


Addition to Fate

by Audasha



Category: Gundam Wing
Genre: Angst, Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, F/M, Fueled by energy drinks and insomnia, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Underage Sex, M/M, Multi, Not Beta Read, Not Gundam Wing: Frozen Teardrop Compliant, Rape/Non-con Elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:54:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28236525
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Audasha/pseuds/Audasha
Summary: War is complex, and space is vast. Despite humans venturing in to space, fate has a way of making sure people are where they are supposed to be in order to fulfill its purpose.The past has a way of coming back and weaving its way into the pilots' lives.
Relationships: Chang Wufei/Original Female Character(s), Duo Maxwell/Heero Yuy (past - mentioned), Duo Maxwell/Original Female Character(s), Heero Yuy/Original Female Character(s), Sally Po/Lady Une, Trowa Barton/Quatre Raberba Winner, Zechs Merquise/Lucrezia Noin
Kudos: 2





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> To say I have been working on this for a long time would be an understatement. It has gone through many changes, revisions and additions. It is also the first piece of fan fiction I ever wrote.

_I refuse to look back thinking days were better  
Just because they're younger days  
I don't know what's 'round the corner  
Way I feel right now I swear we'll never change _  
Kids - OneRepublic

**_May AC 186_ **

“Hi!”

“Hi,” the boy responded reluctantly.

“You wanna play?”

“I don’t play with girls anymore.”

“Why not?”

The boy just looked at the girl.

“Awww come on! The other boys don’t wana play either,” she said sadly. “The ones in my group are too old.”

“Well, I don’t wanna play.”

“Why not?”

“Because boys don’t play with girls.”

“Says who?” she asked hotly.

“Says A.J.”

“A.J.’s a meanie.”

The boy just wrinkled his nose at the girl.

“We can pretend to be spies,” the girl said hopefully.

The boy just looked over at the girl out of the corner of his eye.

“Come on! Let’s see what the big kids are up to!” she said reaching out her hand.

The boy regarded her hand for a moment before smiling and taking it in his as they ran off to spy on the big kids.

**_July AC 186_ **

“Shhh!” he hissed.

“Sorry!” she whispered back.

They climbed a few crates in the back alley way to get to a second story fire escape. The boy took a step forward on the last crate and it gave way. The girl reached out and grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him towards her, catching him in a hug.

“Thanks cupcake,” he said softly.

“I steal one cupcake, and I get stuck with the nickname for life,” she said, sticking her tongue out at him. 

“And your hair,” he said giggling.

She put on a pout and stuck out her tongue again.

**_December AC 186_ **

“Here, I found an extra pair of gloves.”

“They’re pink!” she said with mild disgust. “Thank you though, my last pair got swiped.”

“Girls like pink, right?”

“Yeah, they’re better than nothing. I could stick them in soot later though.”

The boy just rolled his eyes.

**_February AC 187_ **

“I wanna show ya something,” the boy whispered.

The girl just nodded.

The boy dug around the pile of things he called a bed and pulled out what was left of a stuffed rabbit. 

“Solo says he found me with it when I was a baby. He says I should keep it as a memento. I dunno what that means, but I’ve had it forever.”

The girl looked at it carefully. She noted what was left of the tail and the remaining button for an eye. Half of the whiskers were missing and she could tell that it used to be white, but now it was a dingy shade of grey/brown. 

“You can have him,” the boy said.

“You’d give him to me?” the girl asked, astonished.

“Yeah. Besides, boys don’t carry around stuffed animals. That, and I’ll know he’s safe,” he said with a small smile.

The girl took the animal carefully and held it like it was the most precious thing she had ever owned. 

**_April AC 187_ **

“Hiya!”

“Hey!”

“I nabbed some flowers, I thought you might like them,” the boy said, ducking his head a bit. He thrust the handful of daffodils at her.

She blinked a few times before squeaking, “Thanks.”

**_June AC 187_ **

“Maya! I can’t find him anywhere!”

“Honey, maybe they just moved to a new spot.”

“No! He never lies and he said he’d be there!” she said through a sob.

The older woman scooped the child into her arms. “Then I don’t know what to tell you kiddo. Maybe he found a home.”

The little girl just cried.

**_December AC 187_ **

“But Lacy, you’re sick!”

“The answer is no! I can’t lose you too!”

“You won’t! I learned how to sneak! I can get in and out and get the medicine you need!” the little girl cried.

“We’ll be fine, just find enough trash to keep the fires warm.”

“But…” the little girl said, her lip trembling.

“Honey, I know we have lost a lot of people already, but if we can just make it through the cold spell, I promise, we’ll be fine. Besides, you seem to be feeling better.”

“I am,” the girl said warily. She didn’t believe the young woman, but she was in charge, so she had to stay put. For now anyway.

Once the woman was asleep, she snuck away from the group and made her way to the medical supply building she knew held the medicine she needed for her group.

After avoiding guards at the side of the base, she made her way through a gap in the wall and crept through the shadows towards the small medical building. She managed to pick the lock on the back door rather easily and slip inside. It took awhile to find what she was looking for while not being seen, but eventually she spied her prize and went for the cabinet it was in. Just as her hand closed around the first vile, the light in the office flicked on.

“What are you doing?!” a nurse yelled.

The little girl whirled around, the vile in her hand, and made a run for it.

“Security! Catch that girl!” she called after the little girl.

Just feet from the door, a security guard got a hand on the small girl’s shirt and picked her up like a momma cat would a kitten.

“Let me go! They’re sick! I have to get back to them!” the little girl said, starting to panic.

“You’re not going anywhere,” the security guard said, almost apologetically.

“But they’ll die!” the girl cried, almost getting hysterical.

“Ace, all she took was a vile of antibiotics. I thought she was after something else,” the nurse said quietly. She made a move to touch the struggling girl and all she felt was bone. “Oh good heavens, she’s nothing but skin and bones. Ace, take her to room three, make sure she stays there, and we’ll get her some food,” she said, administering a light sedative. 

The security guard knew what that meant. He took the child to the room and placed her in the bed.

“No! I have to help them!” the girl cried. Though, due to the sedative and her small frame, she couldn’t do much to fight off the burly man or the restraints. 

“Shhh. I’m sure they’ll be fine for a few days,” he replied as he tucked her in.

“No, no, no,” she kept saying as she drifted off to sleep.

Two days later and the small girl had still refused to eat. The nurse did all she could for her, but realized that the poor thing just wanted to get back to her family. She dug out a coat for her and found extra winter clothes from the lost and found and sent her on her way.

“Lacy! I’m sorry I ran off!” the small girl called out, rounding the corner to their spot. Everybody looked to be sleeping still. Then she noticed that the fires had gone out. She went and started one back up and then went to wake her comrades up.

“Lex! Wake up! I found you a scarf!” she said. When the young man wouldn’t wake, she shook him gently. Still getting no response, she shook him harder and the young man fell forward. The little girl jumped back. 

“No!” she whispered to herself. She ran around to the others and got the same response. Finally she made it over to Lacy. 

“Lace, please be okay!” she yelled, shaking the young woman by her shirt. All she got was another limp body. The small girl backed away in horror, until she tripped over a rock, and promptly fell on her butt. She gathered the donated clothes around her and made herself a little nest and cried herself to sleep.

**_August AC 188_ **

“Did you hear about Maxwell Church?” an older man asked.

“Yeah, such a shame,” a young woman answered.

“What happened?” the little girl asked.

“I’m not sure of the specifics kiddo, but it was demolished during a rebellion. I hear only one kid got away.”

“Oh,” the little girl said, looking at the ground.

**_May AC 189_ **

“So when those dumb asses walk through here, we fire. They have no right being here and clearly they didn’t get the message last time,” a boy said to a group of equally scuzzy kids. 

“Do we just leave them there?” one of them asked.

“Do you want to get caught by the cops?” the leader countered.

“No,” the other answered.

“Then yeah, we leave 'em there.”

The thugs made their way to their hiding spots, keeping an eye out for the rival group.

A short while later the rival group made their way down the main road, thinking they were going to talk turf. Just as they came into range, a group of people exited a local bar, stumbling noisily into the street, just behind the oncoming group. The local gang didn’t seem to care about the innocents and made the signal to fire. It was over in seconds and the local group made their way out of the area just as fast. 

Once they were gone, a young girl seemed to appear out of the shadows and over to the body of one of the now dead bystanders. Searching for cash, she came across a shuttle I.D. that said the person worked for a transport company. Undoubtedly, this woman had a return flight somewhere since nobody had anything to transport _from_ this colony. The girl grabbed the I.D. and all of the wallets and another I.D. from the others and made her way back to the shadows. She’d take these to A.J. and get them off this rock in no time.

**_June AC 190_ **

“Come on A.J.!” she hissed to herself.

The girl kept to the shadows while waiting for her partner. He was supposed to meet up with her to get the I.D she had swiped nearly a year earlier back to her. They had managed to hack into the employee database and get the cards and expense accounts reactivated and the last step was putting her picture on her card and have it still work. For the last eleven months they had been using the card sparingly the places they knew didn’t actually verify the picture. If A.J was successful, they could go anywhere and get what they needed, no questions asked.

Further down the alley, a man stumbled his way out a back door to one of the bars. Clearly the manager had shown the guy out the back to avoid a scene with either the local cops or the Alliance troops. She would have liked to meet A.J. elsewhere, but he worked at the bar as a dish boy one or two nights a week two places up the way. Tonight he was on the early dinner shift so he was due out soon and they could both head somewhere else. 

The drunkard was making his way towards a group of kids about her age that were huddled around a small trash fire. The lone girl stayed where she was hidden though. There was no sense in butting in if all he’d do was stumble on past to piss in a corner. However, it became obvious that was not his goal, as he reached out and grabbed one of the kids by the hair.

“Leave her alone!” the girl called out. 

The man turned to look at the one issuing the commands, but didn’t let go of the girl he had grabbed.

With what seemed like lightning speed and practiced skill, the girl ran towards the man, used a crate for leverage and launchd herself at the man, wrapping her slim arms around his neck.

“Get off me you little snot!” he bellowed, stumbling backwards into a wall in an effort to get her off his back. 

“Hey! Leave her alone!” A.J. yelled out, from down the alleyway.

The man drew a gun and shot in A.J.’s direction. That was enough time for the girl to pull out her knife and stab him in the shoulder. He howled with pain, and reached up to throw her off of him, thankfully having forgotten about the other girl he had snached earlier. 

“A.J.!” the girl called out to her friend, still very aware the larger man had a gun.

“I’m good,” came the soft reply.

The drunk gave her a disgruntled, but dismissive look, and stumbled back towards the girls at the fire.

“Oh no you don’t,” the girl growled. This time she didn’t stab to injure. “You okay?” she asked the others once she was sure the man was down for good.

They all nodded so she took off down the alley to find her friend. 

“A.J., you sure you're okay?”

She didn’t get an answer. 

“A.J.?” she asked again, this time reaching her friend. She could see the pool of blood from the gunshot was too large to be survivable. “No,” she whispered, as she sank to her knees and cried. 

  
  



	2. Red to Blue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Howard knew about her, but didn't know for sure that she had made it through. He has a hand in setting fate in motion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title for this one was chosen well before the political BS hit the fan, and I didn't have anything else in mind.

_I know that it's hailing bullets_   
_I know I can't control_   
_I'm ready for a change_

_Head's feeling heavy, clouds are rolling_   
_Stuck in the same, keeps me in holding_   
_Waiting too long just to feel_

_The storm is coming on, on, on_  
Storm - Famba (feat. Kyra Mastro)

**_January AC 197_ **

“Phoenix 12, come in please.”

“This is Phoenix 12. Who is this?”

“This is Keres[1],” was the only answer.

“I’m sorry, Keres isn’t some...” the communications officer started.

“Keres?” Howard cut in.

“Yes sir.”

Howard slumped over the controls. The rest of the people in the room had never seen the man be anything other than upbeat and sarcastic. Maybe a little tense at the height of Libra, but this was rare.

“Thank god,” he whispered to himself. “Come aboard,” he said aloud.

“Thank you. Keres out.”

“Sir?” the officer questioned, but Howard was already on his way to the landing bay.

* * *

“I appreciate you helping me out,” the pilot said to the crew that was beginning to assemble. “It’s been awhile since I could get my communicator working,” the pilot said, finally taking off their helmet.

Howard made it to the bay just as their helmet came off and quirked an eyebrow when an auburn braid fell across said pilot’s back. “What kind of joke is this?” he said as he approached.

“Joke?”

As the pilot turned, Howard expected to see violet eyes, but was met with emerald instead. Eyes that were set in female features, and not too friendly looking, at the moment.

“Care to explain old man? Or are you just going to keep staring at me?”

“Heh. Sorry. From behind you looked like somebody else,” he said, waving his hand as if to dismiss it all. Her face softened a bit, so he continued, “I’ll give you one thing kid, you know how to network.”

She was still glaring at him, but cocked her head sideways, confused about his statement.

“I didn’t get to see this one compleated,” Howard said to himself, looking at the suit that was in the bay.

Kailee had been Professor G’s sister. While equally brilliant, she didn't have nearly the twisted streak the Deathscythe’s creator had. In fact, Howard had quite the soft spot for her, and made sure to keep track of her as best he could after the six men went their separate ways. He had heard she had managed to complete her machine, and even find a pilot, but then Operation Meteor happened, and he had his hands full helping Duo and the others through the wars.

“Are you Howard?” the pilot asked.

“Hmm? Oh, yeah,” Howard said, returning his attention to the girl in front of him.

“I was supposed to find you if...” she faltered. She kept the scowl on her face to hide the hurt. “Kailee told me to find you if she was...” she tried again. She looked around at the crowd she had gathered and shrank in on herself a bit.

“Back to work,” Howard barked at the crew.

There was a flurry of movement as they went back to their jobs.

“She’s gone?” Howard asked softly.

The girl nodded but looked at the floor. The loss of her mentor had hurt. Death was normal for her, but Kailee had taught her so much. Not just to fly this suit, but about life in general; that there was more to life than being a street rat and that even at 12, you could be a lady.

“Well, you’re safe here,” he assured her.

The girl relaxed and seemed to gain a measure of confidence back at that statement.

“Thank you. I didn’t know where to go next,” she said, idly scrubbing the toe of her boot across the floor.

“Did ya have anything in mind? In general that is.”

“Anywhere with people. I have spent too much time alone,” she said looking at him.

“I thought Mars was populated.”

She gave an indignant snort. “For the number of people that keep to themselves, you wouldn’t know it.”

“Well, we have a shuttle headed to Earth for supplies. You could tag along on that. No room for the suit though. Otherwise we’re headed to an area over by L3 to do some cleanup work.”

The girl made a slight face, but made no effort to give a preference. She wasn’t about to ask for too much without knowing who this guy really was.

“I have taken care of one of these before ya know,” Howard said, knowing full well that space wasn’t where she wanted to be.

“When could I get it back?” she asked, hesitantly.

“Well, I think we have a large container ship headed Earth side come April,” Howard said, consulting a nearby clipboard. “I know of somebody that owes me a favor with a hangar large enough that I can stow it in once we land.”

You sure?” she asked, still not sure if she should just leave her suit with just anybody.

“Yeah. I don’t normally take in mobile suits. Too much trouble. When I got word you were Kai’s kid, I figured I could help. But it takes a lot of talk to get you in a position to be helped and not hauled off to jail.”

“Jail?”

“Like I said, mobile suits are too much trouble. The Preventers have been working hard for almost a year to make sure all suits are put out of commission. Unless I’m asked, I stay away from ‘em, ‘cept for parts, that is. If I find ‘em, I destroy ‘em. Anybody that doesn’t have clearance to have a whole one gets hauled off.”

“Wow, I know I’ve been out of the loop, but I didn’t know how much. I guess I am lucky then. I really appreciate you helping, especially knowing what trouble it could cause.”

“Well, Kai was a good friend. I’m sorry to hear of her passing.”

She just nodded.

Howard just smiled and made to turn away.

“Um, Howard,” she started. Howard turned back to her. “Kailee mentioned that I wasn’t…the only one. Being out at Mars I had nobody to really communicate with, but she said something about a former friend of hers building another suit. Was that you?”

Howard just looked at her with a confused expression. “You mean to tell me you had no news feeds or anything out there?”

She shook her head. The conversation had gone better in her head; had she ever gotten a chance to have it. “No, I mean, I know how the wars ended. I know I’m not the only one out there, but by the time any news even made it to Mars, everything was covered up or just nonexistent. I guess I just wondered who they were.”

“But there was a whole year between wars. You mean to tell me that you didn’t try…”

“Mars is an outpost. People out there have learned to live without knowing much. It’s almost like they are a different species or something that don't care much about the colonies or Earth. They were relieved that the danger had passed, but they didn’t care how or why. It’s very bizarre out there. Hence the reason I want to go somewhere populated.”

“Well, to answer your question, yes, there are others. Five to be precise, six if you count…” Howard stopped himself.

“So there are five?” she asked, catching the old man’s almost slip but ignoring it.

“Yes, but I don’t know where they are,” he lied. Duo may have owed him a favor, but he wouldn’t betray the former pilot’s trust like that.

“Well, I guess I can do research with my free time down on Earth.”

“Listen, I can set you up with a decent place if you want. This guy that owes me a favor owes me a big one.”

“You’d really cash that in for me?”

“Like I said, Kai was a good friend and I know she’d want me to take care of you. Besides, I know another guy that owes me a favor and has a big heart and probably wouldn’t count this as cashing in the favor.”

“I don’t need anybody’s charity,” she said flatly.

“Huh? Nah, it’s not that. I just know where you’re coming from kid. You had a tough break being stuck out at Mars. Call it…what you’re owed, at the very least, for your part in the war.”

She was skeptical, but gave a reluctant nod. “I don’t need anything fancy. A bed, a communicator, a laptop and a refresher[2] is all I need.”

“Well, I can show you to the residential area of the ship and you can have a shower and the rest is yours once you get Earth-side.”

“Thanks,” she said with one last look at her machine.

Howard showed her around the ship and then to a spare bunk room as well as pointing out the bathrooms.

“Shuttle leaves in three days, 16:00. Be in the launch bay before that or head to L3 with us,” Howard said over his shoulder as he left her to her room.

* * *

“Quatre, why are you looking at an apartment site?”

“Howard is coming into town,” the blond answered, not looking away from the screen.

Trowa just raised an eyebrow and waited for Quatre to elaborate.

“He said that he has somebody that needs a place to stay. I offered a room at the house but he said they were looking to permanently relocate to Earth. I told him I’d see what I could find.”

“Favor trading again?”

“Yeah,” Quatre said absently as he continued to look over the listings. “Sadly, I have no idea who this person even is so it’s hard to know what area of town to look into,” he finished, finally turning his attention away from his computer.

“For what?” Yamane asked as she walked into the office.

“An apartment for a friend of a friend,” Quatre answered.

“There’s an apartment that just opened across the hall from me. I love it over there.”

Quatre realized just then that he had no idea where Yamane actually lived. She and Wufei had only been dating for a couple of months and she hadn’t really said much of anything about her personal life otherwise. “Is it a decent side of town?”

“Yeah! It’s a cute little artsy section. Very diverse.”

Quatre looked at his watch. “Crap. I have a meeting in ten minutes with the board.”

“Quatre, you’re not going to make it across town in ten minutes,” Trowa said.

Quatre gave his boyfriend an exasperated ‘I know’ look. “It’s a good thing they agreed to meet me over at the Hilton. Mane, if I give you a check, can you secure the apartment for me?”

“Yeah, sure. Do you have a name to put on the place?”

“No. Just put it all in my name since I’m taking care of it anyway,” he said, scribbling something on a post-it and then handing that and a check to her. “This is the fax number they can forward the documents to. Wufei has my number in case they have questions,” he said as he gave Trowa a hasty kiss and ran out the door.

“One of these days I’m going to get him to slow down,” Trowa said, watching the blond leave in a near tornado of activity.

“Yeah right,” Yamane snorted.

Trowa just rolled his eyes and they both turned back to their work.

* * *

It had been a long three days, but she was glad for the rest and relaxation that was brought on by knowing nobody was coming for her. She had dumbed down her missions and involvement on Mars to Howard. In reality, she was lucky her suit had made it back to Mars and that she wasn’t hunted down and killed. Though she was there to help, she was a pilot, and without an official affiliation, she was often seen as an enemy. Operation Meteor had been about colony freedom, but being stationed at Mars, she was there to make sure OZ and other factions didn’t try to take control of the newly forming project. The residents thought they were doing just fine on their own, so her presence wasn’t welcome, not that they knew just how much trouble they had been in.

OZ had snuck a base on the outskirts of the terraforming center, and was slowly putting people in place to influence political structure. They had also started building a mobile suit factory, with it switching to mobile doll production towards the end of the fist war. While not an overly large operation, it needed to be taken care of. By the time Mariemea had attempted to take control on Earth, Aria had managed to get most of the factory rendered inoperable, and all the data on the agendas and corresponding proof had ‘mysteriously’ turned up on the desk of the President of the Mars project. Thankfully the woman was originally from Earth, so she understood the implications of OZ even looking in their direction, and made sure the planet was not allowed to come under any outside influence. Even so, it had been a bit of a nightmare to get out of there, and back to Earth’s orbit and within communication range.

Looking out the window, she grew excited. She hadn’t been to Earth yet. It would be a new adventure for her, being old enough to wander the planet by herself. Nobody would know her there, hopefully. While Howard had been good to her, she was looking forward to being on her own and not on the run. He had made sure she was comfortable, fed, and made sure the crew didn’t bother her or poke around her mobile suit, and she would forever be in his debt.

“Good to see my calls aren’t going to waste!” Howard called out as she entered the bay.

“And miss my chance to go to Earth? Never,” she said with a sassy grin.

“You know, you’ve been here for three days and I still don’t know your name.”

“What’s wrong with ‘K’s kid,’?” she asked smartly.

Howard just gave her a look over his sunglasses.

“Alright, I owe you that much,” she said with a mock sigh. “Hello Howard, my name is Aria Bennett,” she said, holding out her hand.

“Well hello Aria, nice to have a name for that pretty face,” he said, with a firm handshake.

“Dirty old man,” she said with a wink.

* * *

The entry to Earth was rough. She was expecting some bumps, but the pilot had said they caught the back end of the window, so it was rougher than if they had been scheduled for mid window. This time she was just grateful for a seat belt and a view, as the last time she had travelled by shuttle, she was a stowaway on a container ship.

“Entry confirmed. We need to re-route north due to weather,” the captain’s voice came over the intercom.

The seatbelt sign turned off and Aria got up to talk to the stewardess.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes Miss?”

“This is my first time that I have been to Earth. How far are we going to be from our original landing point?”

“You must be Miss Bennett. Howard made sure you were taken care of. Not to worry. There is a domestic flight from the shuttle port tomorrow that will get you where you’re supposed to be[3].”

“Tomorrow?”

“Yes. There is a room in your name at the hotel a few blocks from the shuttle port and a car will be waiting to take you there. There will also be a car to bring you back in the morning. I am also supposed to tell you that there will be a car at the airport at your destination to take you to your apartment.”

“Wow.”

The stewardess giggled.

Aria just nodded and headed back to her seat.

* * *

“I’ll be back to pick you up in the morning. Is there anything else I can do for you Miss?”

“This is going to sound silly but, this white stuff, it’s snow isn’t it?”

The driver looked a little bewildered and then let out a soft laugh. “I take it this is your first time off colony?”

“Mmmhmm,” Aria said, looking around at the way the snow stuck to everything.

“Well, yes, this is snow. Fairly common in these parts this time of year.”

Aria bent down to grab a handful of the white fluffy stuff and promptly dropped it as the cold registered on her fingers.

The driver let out another chuckle. It wasn’t very often he got to witness somebody’s first experience with snow. He smiled as the girl examined the crystalline water with childlike awe.

“You read about it, but you never quite get it until you see it,” Aria said, mostly to herself.

“Forty winters of it, you’ll get sick of it. You’re here while we only have a fresh few inches. Normally this time of year we have a good several feet.”

Aria looked up at the man with surprise.

“I’m not kidding.”

* * *

Howard had left her with a slip of paper and a duffle bag. The paper had the address of her new place and the bag had her few personal possessions, one of the main command chips from her suit, and a spare handgun.

“You never know when you’ll need to defend yourself. Better safe than sorry,” Howard told her. He had also wrangled her a sweeper work pass that let her circumvent security to avoid questions.

“Also, look into the Preventers when you get dirt side,” he had said with a wink. “They might have more information on what you’re searching for.”

“I highly doubt they will have information on the other pilots just laying around.”

“I never said it would be easy. And if you find what you’re looking for, let me know.”

Aria had just given him a questioning look. Howard had an amused look at the last statement, almost like she couldn’t do it, and if she did, the old man was due to win a bet or something. Too bad he didn’t know she could hack the best of security. There were only a handful of hackers that could do better than her.

The flight to where she was supposed to end up was uneventful. When she got to the pickup area, she asked somebody for directions. The lady said that the apartment was several miles from the airport so Aria decided that she would take the car waiting for her. After looking down the row of town cars, she spotted one with a driver holding a sign that read ‘Howard’s Friend’ in neat, scripted handwriting.

‘Time to start my new life,’ she thought to herself. She waved to the driver and made her way to the car.

* * *

After about a half hour’s drive, the driver pulled up to what looked like a row of shops.

“Excuse me, but I thought I was headed to an apartment?”

“Yes miss. I have been instructed to tell you that the apartment is above the glass shop here. Number seven and I believe Miss Sung said it was the one on the right.”

“Miss Sung?”

“Yes miss. She lives right across the hall. I believe she is the one that helped my boss secure the apartment for you.”

“Oh. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome miss,” the driver said, fishing in his pocket. “These are the keys,” he said, handing them to her. “Also, my boss wasn’t sure who he was arranging for, so he sent this card along so you may purchase anything you need for your stay here.”

“Thank you, but tell your boss that I take nobody’s charity,” she said, gently pushing the card away.

“I was told not to be refused, miss. He insists. I got the impression that many essentials were left un-purchased due to his schedule, so this may come in handy,” he said, handing the card to her again.

Aria took the card, though she made a point not to look happy about it.

“I believe you’ll find everything you’ll need within a few blocks. I was told to mention that the grocery store at the far corner is better than the one closer and that there is a large department store two blocks west past the park, where you can find most of what you’ll need. If for any reason you need to go further than that, I am at your disposal,” he finished, handing her a business card with his name and number on it.

“Thank you…Garry,” she said as she read the name off the card. “I apologize. I was so distracted about getting here I never did introduce myself. My name is Aria Bennett.”

“Nice to meet you Aria,” he said with a smile. “I hate to be rude, but I actually have to go pick up my boss and I have to switch cars before I get there.”

“A man of such stature only has one driver?”

“He only _trusts_ one driver,” he said with a smile.

“Well then, I feel very important. Do say thank you to him for me,” she said as she got out of the car.

“Will do, miss.”

Aria shut the door and Garry took off. She turned and made her way to the little door beside the glass shop, and up to apartment seven. Once inside, she looked around her new apartment. Apparently whoever had secured it for her didn’t get the memo that she didn’t need much. The square footage alone was more than she had needed. Thankfully it had already been furnished; otherwise she wouldn’t know where to start.

The kitchen was large enough for two people to work in at the same time and not get in each other’s way. The side that faced the living room was only a counter, and had bar stools on the other side. Between the living room and kitchen there was an intimate table with six chairs. The living room was large enough to accommodate the plush black leather couch and loveseat, as well as the overly huge TV and its entertainment center; all of which surrounded a glass topped coffee table.

The bed was a bit much. No single person needed a king sized bed, nor did they need the twenty or so pillows that were on it. She was glad to see a desk set up in a corner of the room though.

She wondered who in their right mind would own enough clothing or shoes to fill the walk-in closet and the dresser.

The bathroom was the size of her last place. It had a large linen cabinet that sat in line with the double sinks that dead ended into a wall that shielded the toilet from view. In the other far corner was a large jet tub that was built into a tile platform and was built right into the wall for the stand alone shower.

Back out in the kitchen, she saw a note on the counter.

> _Dear Friend,_
> 
> _I apologize for the lack of linens and other such necessities. I do not normally leave guests to fend for themselves as such. Regrettably my schedule took a last minute turn to be full every spare second I previously had open and didn’t have anybody else on hand to help on such short notice. I trust Garry informed you where to purchase anything you need as well as gave you the card to make these purchases. I look forward to hopefully meeting you. Any friend of Howard is a friend of mine._
> 
> **_QRW_ **
> 
> _P.S. At least this way you can shop to your taste. I kept things as neutral as possible to allow for personal touches be added at a later date._

Aria blinked at the note. Clearly she had some further inspecting to do. Up until then, she had wondered what on earth or the colonies this place could be missing. After looking in every cupboard and drawer though, she realized that there were no dishes or silverware, there were only two towels (she knew she could deal with that, but spares were always nice), and there was absolutely no food. She also realized that there was a vidcom, but no laptop.

Just as she was about to head out to get herself some dinner, there was a knock on the door. She peered through the peephole and saw a girl, about her age, wearing some sort of uniform. She looked to be Asian-American with dark brown hair, crystalline blue eyes and a medium complexion. Aria opened the door as far as the chain would allow.

“Oh good, you’re here!” was the response.

“Yes, I suppose I am,” Aria said cautiously.

“I’m Yamane. Yamane Sung. I live across the hall,” said the girl.

“Ah,” was all Aria said before shutting the door and unhooking the chain. “I’m Aria. Aria Bennett,” she said after she opened the door again.

Yamane just stood there staring for a moment.

“Is something wrong?” Aria asked.

“Huh?” Yamane shook her head. “Oh, no. You just looked familiar, that’s all. Anyway, welcome to the neighborhood! I thought you were supposed to get in yesterday, but each time I knocked, nobody answered.”

“Yeah, I had a plane delay. Um, I don’t mean to be rude, but I was just on my way out. I need to grab food and a laptop.”

“You need a ride?”

“You’d offer a ride to a stranger?”

“We already introduced ourselves. Besides, you’re a friend of Howard’s! Anything I can do to help out is a pleasure!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1 Keres - Goddesses of death, I'm using it as a singular name here [return to story]
> 
> 2 I can’t remember where I saw or heard of it, but it’s a shower that doesn’t use water. Some sort of space technology to limit water use. [return to story]
> 
> 3 I didn’t put a location because…well, I really didn’t know where they’d end up. It’s a large city, with space for many large estates at the outskirts. Warmer climate. I just don’t know many areas like that to put a name to it. [return to story]


	3. Remember

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Who would think that you could cross paths with your past?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was previously a song fic, but I cut most of the lyrics out, so it turned into more of a short one-shot.

_I feel the wind move, we breathe the same air_   
_You're like the best news that I can't share_

_A stranger's eyes that somehow look familiar (Somehow look familiar)_   
_I know that when it's you, I'll remember_   
_Remember_

_So wait for me, I swear I'll find you_  
Something Better - Audien (feat. Lady A)

_**March AC 197** _

“Ooo straight hair. I like it!” Yamane said when they met in the hall.

“I figured I’d go with something different,” Aria said nervously.

“Girl, you’re going to have beat guys off with a stick!”

Aria just rolled her eyes.

“Hey, Zane and the rest of the crew are going to be there tonight. Just mention you’re not looking, and they will keep unwanted visitors at bay. You know that.”

“Yeah,” Aria said with a small smile. Yamane had introduced her to her boyfriend, who oddly wasn’t coming tonight, and the rest of her friends at the club. They were a great group of people, and she was finally starting to feel at home, and a little more towards normal.

* * *

Simpatico was a local, underground nightclub that attracted all types. On any given night you could find ravers, punks, goths, the once-a-month types and anything in between. The music varied between a lot of pre-colony dance music, hard rock, and techno, all mixed with more recent selections, to keep it relevant.

He hadn’t been out in a while, and he knew Yamane was headed out to the club tonight, so he thought he would meet up and tag along. None of the other ex-pilots were really into the club scene, not that many of them had time these days. Upon arriving at Simpatico though, he decided to blend into the background.

He went to the bar to grab a drink before settling in and watching the crowd. While Zane and crew were there, he didn’t feel like being overly social at the moment. As he approached the bar, he stopped short. There was somebody sitting on a stool with hair just slightly shorter than his, and straight as a board. He had a slight flashback to when he was a child, before Sister Helen had taught him how to braid his hair.

“Lady A!” Lulu called.

The person on the bar stool turned quickly and the fall of hair swished to the side to reveal very feminine features that were smiling in Lulu’s direction. Despite the movement of the majority of her hair, she still had a thick fringe that crossed across the top of her face, so he didn’t get a solid look at her.

“Hey Lu!” the girl in question answered back and gave the other girl a hug.

He slunk back into the shadows and figured he’d just get a drink from a passing waitress once he found a table.

* * *

“You’re being watched.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, that guy over there,” Yamane said, and rolled her eyes in the followers direction.

Aria maneuvered and stole a glance in the direction Yamane had motioned to.

“He’s too hidden,” she said, turning back to her friend. In truth, she had gotten a glimpse of a slender yet muscular build, longer hair that was at least pulled back, and a light, but not pasty, complexion. However, he had melded back into the shadows before she could study his face.

“Typical,” Yamane said with a smirk.

“You know him?”

Yamane blushed. “Yeah, he’s a buddy of Wufei’s.”

“That’s kind of relevant. You were going to tell me, when?”

“If you went over to say hi.”

“Nice,” she said, rolling her eyes.

* * *

Initially he had just come to potentially pester Yamane and people watch, but he found himself watching the new girl that Yamane had brought with her. It wasn’t anybody he knew from the office, and while he didn’t want to be obvious, anybody outside of Preventers was automatically a suspicious person until otherwise introduced. That wasn’t what had intrigued him though. This girl had a familiar grace that he couldn’t put his finger on, but it was sexy as hell. The song switched again and he groaned. This one always made the girls get raunchy.

When the song started Yamane grabbed Aria to make sure they stayed on the dance floor. ‘Oh what the heck,’ she thought. ‘Might as well play with him a bit,’ and let out a scream with the song and ran her hands down her body. More people made it to the floor and she and Yamane eventually acquired quite a few people dancing with and around them.

Clearly the girls knew the song; not that he would have thought any different. Something about the fact that this new girl was singing along was holding his attention, and turning him on.

She was openly flirting with the group they had acquired. If he was going to watch, he was going to get a show.

He stood and walked back over to the bar. The waitress hadn’t been by yet and he needed something to drink.

Aria caught that he had moved, and made sure to maneuver herself so she could keep an eye on him without being obvious. It was still dark enough at the edges of the floor though, so she was still at a loss as to what her admirer truly looked like.

_[I'm kissing all the boys and the girls]_

She grabbed the chin of the guy next to her with one hand and the girl on her other side with the other hand, and on cue with the music, she kissed the guy and then the girl.

He just about choked on the drink he had acquired. After the split second it took to recover, he decided he’d go back to his table, and sat in the accompanying chair.

She idly watched him find his seat again, and as the next verse came to an end she turned, flicking her hair off her face with the motion, and looked him squarely in the eyes and mouthed along with the song; _[… fuck you]_

He just about fell out of his seat. He would know those eyes anywhere. Solo might haunt his dreams, but those eyes were always something he remembered in his daydreams. That realization was like a quick cold shower.

Aria blinked as she finally saw a pair of amethyst eyes looking back at her and she quickly turned back to the crowd, dismissing a flash of memory as quickly as it came.

Yamane saw it all, and elbowed Aria and mouthed, ‘What was that?’

Aria just let out a nervous laugh. As the song ended, she made a motion to Yamane that she needed a break from the dance floor. All Yamane could do was laugh and follow her friend to their table.

* * *

_~Dream~_

“D!”

The boy turned towards the sound.

“D!” the girl called again.

“Wadda ya want?” the boy said, trying to scowl.

The girl stopped short at the look. Her lip started to tremble and her eyes started to get misty.

“Don’t be such a girl,” the boy said.

“I am a girl!” the girl protested.

He just looked at her with an impatient look.

“Maya said we need food. Solo said we could go together as long as we don’t get caught.”

“He’s letting us go on our own?” he asked, astonished.

The girl nodded eagerly, a small smile returning to her face.

He made to get up but stepped on his own shoelace, throwing him off balance. The girl reached out and caught him before he fell over and they ended up nose to nose.

“Your eyes are pretty,” he whispered.

The girl let go of him and ducked her head to cover a blush.

“Thank you,” she whispered back. “So are yours,” she said softly.

_~End Dream~_

He sat up and ran a hand over his face, as though the action would clear away the confusion. It had been six days since he had followed Yamane to Simpatico and he had been having dreams of his past ever since then.

“Her group was gone; all dead,” he said aloud to himself. “It can’t be her. Hell, Trowa has the same green eyes and I know he grew up on L3,” he finished and then laughed at himself. Here he was, the middle of the night, and he was talking to himself. ‘Great, now people will really think I’m nuts,’ he thought to himself. With a mental shrug, he flopped backwards and went back to sleep.

* * *

_~Dream~_

She was chasing the boy through the park. They weren’t supposed to be gone this long, but they hardly ever got the chance to play like normal children.

“Come on Ari! This is the tree I was talking about!” the boy called.

She ran over to him and stood at the base of the tree and looked up at its many branches. It was perfect! They could climb halfway up it and watch over the city and keep a lookout for Solo, Sherian or any of the other adults. They could also hang by their knees, or pretend they were flying a space shuttle.

“Just use this branch,” the boy said, and then jumped up and swung himself onto the neighboring branch, “and swing like that and you’re in.”

She nodded and did as she was told and the two of them took off like monkeys up the tree. They spent what felt like hours there until they heard Lex calling for them. They instantly went quiet, well before the young man would have seen them.

Laying the length of side by side branches, they watched as Lex walked right under the tree, not bothering to look up, and passed on by. Once they were sure the young man was out of earshot, they looked at each other for a moment before nearly falling out of the tree in a fit of giggles.

About twenty minutes later, the scene repeated itself, though this time Solo was out looking for them, so he knew enough to look for the sneak thief pair up the tree.

“If you two don’t get down here right now, I’m selling you both off to Shark and he’ll do worse than make you take care of the sick.”

The two children gulped and made it down the tree in record time.

“Good. Ari, Sherian was worried sick about you. Didn’t either of you hear Lex?”

“I don’t see why she was worried,” Ari muttered, “It’s not like she really cares about me.”

“She does so. And you,” Solo said, turning to the boy, “should know better. If Shark caught you two out here alone, he’d snatch you up in a heartbeat. You’re too important to me to have that happen. Got that?”

The boy nodded.

“Come on, let’s get back home,” he said, holding his hand out to the children, each one taking a hand and walking back to their spot in the neighboring streets.

_~End Dream~_

Aria opened her eyes slowly. That was the sixth dream in six days. Not that she didn’t enjoy glimpses of that part of her past, but she wasn’t sure why they were all the sudden so frequent. The mystery guy at Simpatico had reminded her of the boy in her dreams, but she knew there was no way he was even alive. It was a miracle _she_ was alive.


	4. And Then There Were Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aria is found by one of the pilots, and she finds out just how quickly their lives are already tangled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay. The chapter was ready to go, minus the song choice. The next chapter is just about ready, so that should come out a bit faster. After that, I have several chapters that need some fleshing out, but I don't think they will take too long. Thank you for sticking with it!

_All hail the outlaws_   
_Spielbergs and Kubricks_

_It's our time to make a move_   
_It's our time to make amends_   
_It's our time to break the rules_   
_Let's begin_

Renegades - X Ambassadors

  
**_April AC 197_ **

“Hey kiddo!”

“Hey Howard,” Aria said to the video feed with a yawn.

“Sorry, forgot the time difference.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Aria said, waving a hand. “I should be up by now anyway. Been having rough nights. Anyway, what’s up old man?”

“Things okay?”

“Yeah, peachy. Just some odd dreams about some kid I used to know. Anyway, you’re not a shrink. What’s up?”

“Well, we’ll be in town tomorrow.”

Aria just raised an eyebrow.

“It must really be early. It’s April kiddo. What did I promise to deliver to you?”

“Shit!” she said in excitement, nearly throwing her phone in an effort to get out of bed quickly. “When and where?” she said, now fully awake.

“The hangar is at the spaceport, building 4. I’ll put her in bay three. Only people that work for me and the owner are allowed in the building, so no worries about being found out. Entry is slated for 13:00 so we should be dirt side by about 14:00 and you should be set by 15:00.”

“Howard, you are the best!”

“I know,” Howard answered with a smile and cut the connection.

* * *

Finally, here she was, working on her mobile suit. It had been way too long since she had even been able to work on it, let alone in a fully stocked hangar and any parts she could ever need.

Howard had warned her not to put too much into it because of the lack of need for it, and the probability of it getting destroyed in the long run, but she didn’t care. Keres needed repairs and she wasn’t going to be caught unprepared should anything arise again. It was also nice to be in a secure place with only a handful of mechanics working on various shuttles that came in.

About half way through the next day of repairs, Ralph stuck his head around the door to the hangar.

“Aria, don’t forget to take a break every now and then! There’s food and drinks in the fridge in the break room. It’s all on the house.”

“Thanks Ralph! I’ll get something in a bit.”

Ralph was Howard’s right hand man since the wars. Aria got the impression that there had been somebody else, but now that the wars were over, that person had moved on. Regardless, Ralph was a stellar mechanic and took great care of the ships and the crew.

About an hour later she figured it was time for a break. She tested the lift of the right arm and figured it was good enough to leave for a bit. Fine tuning could come after a sandwich. She let her braid out of the knot she had it in and made her way to the break room.

* * *

Quatre was bored. That didn’t happen very often. He wasn’t teaching today and for once he had managed to finish all the things he needed done for WEI. Trowa and Heero were teaching and Wufei was out on assignment. Duo was supposed to be in the office, but things had been slow, so it was anybody’s guess where he ended up if Lady Une let him go for the day.

With a sigh, he decided that he might as well use his spare time to check in on things at the old hangar at the spaceport. The Gundams were gone, but he kept the hangar for each pilot to have a place to work on their various projects. Once at the hangar, he headed towards the break room to see if he could find Ralph or anybody else that knew the agenda of the bays. As he approached, he heard a song being hummed softly. Slowly peering around the door he saw the fridge door opened with somebody standing behind it. The person moved back slightly and he saw a long braid resting on the person’s back.

“Afternoon Duo!” he called out and walked past the door, heading to the mechanics room.

She heard a voice, faintly over her headphones, call out, but she didn’t hear her name, so she assumed somebody must be close by but not aware of her presence. Finding some bottled water and a sandwich, she headed back to work, not thinking that the voice had called to her and was thinking she was the former Deathscythe pilot.

‘Must have had his headphones in,’ Quatre thought to himself. He checked in with Ralph and chatted for a while. Towards the end of the conversation, he asked to see the roster for the day. He noticed that ‘mobile suit repair’ was listed in bay three but also noted to himself that it wasn’t like Duo to work in what used to be Trowa’s bay when he had his own space for his projects; not to mention that having anything to do with a mobile suit was questionable at the very least. Lady Une had given the boys a lot of leeway in terms of legality of projects, but having parts for machines like that still made Quatre uncomfortable.

When he got to the bay, he stopped short. He blinked a few times to make sure he was seeing what he thought he was seeing. After a moment his brain registered fully what was in front of him; a white, dark grey, and smoke lavender Gundam. A movement on the hatch catwalk took his attention from the mobile suit to the operator. Seeing a braid, he automatically relaxed as the figure climbed up the chest panel. As he continued to take in the suit, he also noticed a few other things about his friend that was working on it. Black was normal for Duo, but leggings weren’t. It was also a little cool for a tank top given the spring temperatures recently. Then it really hit him; the end of his hair was dyed dark purple and it wasn’t as long as he thought. His hair was either up or cut really short. He dismissed the latter thought though; Duo would never cut his hair. Upon closer examination, the rest of his hair seemed a different shade of brown.

After finishing off her lunch, Aria wound her hair up a bit to get it out of the way and continued to work on the right arm mechanics. Sitting on the hatch door, she played with the computer to get a current diagnostic. Something wasn’t working right though so she climbed up to a chest panel where she had taken a hit to see if the damage there was interfering. Just as she was about to stick her head between panels, she heard a slight rustling behind her and she immediately stopped what she was doing. The other mechanics knew to announce their presence, so whomever was sneaking in, shouldn’t be there. The intruder made another noise and she immediately knew where they were and she deftly pulled a small knife from her braid and threw it as she turned, knowing it would go just to the side of the intruder as a warning.

“What do you want?” Aria said glowering at the intruder. Internally though, she was satisfied to see the knife had hit the wall just where she thought it would and the ‘target’ was looking appropriately scared and stunned.

“I…I…I think I have the wrong bay” was all he managed to say as he slowly moved sideways towards the door. “I thought you were somebody else, I’m sorry,” he continued.

She just arched her eyebrow. She hopped down to the hatch door and continued to glare at the intruder.

“I mean…well…”

Aria just arched the second eyebrow.

“From behind…but the clothes were different…so was the voice…and the tips of your hair…but your eyes…” Quatre spoke in fragments because that’s all he could string together. It was amazing; before him stood a girl with green eyes and a braid that was similar to Duo’s and she was standing on the hatch door to a Gundam. Was she the pilot? It was one that he had never seen and he knew that the others had been destroyed.

All she could do was blink with an angered yet confused look on her face. Why was he spooked? It’s not like she had hit him with the knife or anything. She still didn’t understand what was wrong with the guy by the bay door.

“Who are you?” she asked, trying to move things towards a conversation.

“I should be asking you the same question,” he replied, but all he received was an icy glare.

“I asked you first,” she finally said.

“My name is Quatre Raberba Winner, I own this building.”

“Quatre Winner, huh?” She asked, relaxing a fraction. The name sounded familiar. She ran through all the information she had gathered the last few months. Sadly, most of the information she had managed to hack didn’t have images so there was no face to put to a name…until now. Rather, the face came into better focus as she pieced everything together. She had seen the young man on news feeds, but without the tailored suit, he looked…well…younger, more relaxed and with the current look on his face, not quite as put together.

As she ran through all of her research in her head, Quatre seemed to compose himself more, and started to put together his ‘business persona’ as the others called it.

“I know you…” she finally said, again catching him slightly off guard.

“Most people do,” he said when she failed to finish her sentence.

“No, I have been doing my research,” she said and then climbed down to the lower catwalk. “You aren’t just a business tycoon,” she said with a smirk, “You’re a Gundam pilot.”

Quatre was startled by the statement. Duo was arguably the most recognized of the pilots for his part in the war, having been captured and broadcast on screens across Earth and the Colonies. Quatre was obviously well known, but more for his business ventures at such a young age than his piloting skills. In fact, the topic of his part in the wars was very rarely, if ever, mentioned. The Earth and the Colonies had been through a lot in a very short amount of time, and at Lady Une’s, Relena’s, and many other dignitaries’ suggestion, ‘who’s to blame and who’s a hero’ was to be laid to rest for peace’s sake. By that extension, the Gundam pilots were to be left alone, or at least that topic was to be avoided in conjunction with their current lives.

“And you are?” he asked.

She just smiled. For some reason Quatre couldn’t tell if it was friendly or somewhere closer to dangerous.

“My name is Aria Bennett, and I am the pilot of Keres,” she answered, finishing with a jerk of her head towards the Gundam behind her.

He just stared and blinked rapidly. His suspicions were right, she was the pilot. How in the world did they not know about her?

* * *

They ended up talking for hours about where she was for the past two plus years and why they didn't know about her. It seemed that she had been assigned to protect Mars from OZ instead of going to Earth. The mentor she had trained under had been cast out of the group so therefore her knowledge of Operation Meteor was very limited and mostly acquired from hacking into the systems of the other five scientists. Her communicator had been damaged in a battle towards the end of the first war, so while she was able to hear the good news of the end, she couldn’t radio in that she would be returning to the planet, not being able to make it to the colony. Once back on Mars, she heard that Kailee had been found and killed by a group of radicals. She hid during the Mariemaia incident for fear of being killed herself; with the exception of a few infiltration stints to ensure there was follow through on her information gathering.

While talking, Aria mentioned that she came from the same colony cluster that Duo did, so he wondered if they had somehow crossed paths.

Quatre filled her in on the missions he was a part of so that she had a better picture of the wars that she missed. He managed to leave out some of the more messy parts, namely that he practically killed his boyfriend and that said boyfriend had saved Heero’s life after self destructing.

“So how did you end up here?” Quatre asked.

“I had managed to network enough to get into contact with Howard. He let me tag along on a shuttle to Earth and called in a favor and set me up with a place to stay. I just got Keres back yesterday when he had a carrier coming down.”

“So you’re the one he needed a place for…”

“You’re the guy that owed him a favor?”

“Howard played a big part in finishing the first war, but we helped him too. We kind of trade who owes whom favors,” Quatre finished with a chuckle.

After a while curiosity got the better of her. “So why were you so confused when you first saw me?”

Quatre gave a small snort of laughter. Aria couldn’t help but giggle herself. Having seen him on news feeds, she hadn’t expected such…unrefined…actions from the tycoon. However, she had learned a lot about him in the last few hours they had been talking.

Likewise, Quatre learned that the initial hostility Aria showed was very much a front. She was a very pleasant person once she knew she wasn’t being threatened.

“Why don’t you come back to the house?” he asked and then looked at his watch. “Yikes, we have been here longer than I had thought. Everybody should be home by now.”

“Everybody?”

Quatre gave her a shy yet diplomatic smile. “Ah, yes. I have a few other long term guests,” Quatre said, not meaning to be vague. He had told her about the other pilots, but hadn’t specified that they were all in the same house. That and a few of his sisters were in town for an extended weekend of shopping. “One more thing…” he started and then paused. At Aria’s raised eyebrow he continued, “Trowa and I are together…that’s not a problem is it?”

“What?”

“Two guys…together?”

“No!” she exclaimed, wrinkling her nose, as though she couldn’t believe that anybody would.

Quatre just smiled in return. “It should be dinner time by the time we get back. You will stay for dinner, won’t you?”

“Sure,” she answered hesitantly.

“Good!

* * *

“Wow, Quatre. This is your house?”

Quatre ducked his head and gave a shy smile. “Yeah. It used to be my father’s.”

“Used to be?”

“Ah, the bikes are in the driveway. Everybody should be home,” he answered with a smile. The car came to a stop at the front door and Quatre let himself out, not waiting for Garry to open the door.

“Okay, daddy issues,” Aria muttered to herself. Garry opened her door and she got out, flashed a smile at him, and caught up to the blond before he reached the door. “So, any idea what’s for dinner?”

Quatre raised an eyebrow.

“What?!”

“Nothing, but if I didn’t know any better…”

Aria just gave him a quizzical look. He clearly was comparing her to somebody, but she had no idea who.

“Believe me, you’ll understand in a bit.”

Aria just rolled her eyes.

Quatre opened the front door and motioned for her to enter the house. Aria stepped across the threshold tentatively and was greeted with a large entryway with a grand staircase to her left. There were various doors leading off the entryway and hall, all undoubtedly leading to rooms that could fit her apartment at least ten times over.

“It won’t swallow you whole, ya know,” came a voice. Said voice belonged to a braided boy leaning in the entryway to one of said rooms.

“Ah, Duo! I would like you to meet Aria Bennett.”

Aria turned to the new voice and, upon taking in the speaker, she looked like she had seen a ghost and took a step back. Duo looked dumbstruck as the girl in question turned her full attention towards him.

“Aria, are you okay?” Quatre asked, noting the step back. He then looked to Duo and frowned at the look on his face.

She felt like she was drowning, or at the very least, couldn’t get enough air into her lungs. She had recognised the eyes at the club, but it had been way too dark and crowded to get a good look at him. That night, she had convinced herself that there was no way he was the only one with violet eyes. However, taking in the full view of the boy in front of her, there was no denying who it was.

Similarly, Duo felt like he had the wind knocked out of him. While he had gotten a good look, or several, at the girl the other night, she was now in full light, and there was no doubt left that he was looking at his childhood friend.

“D…but...how?” she stammered, trying to get her mind to fire enough to be coherent. Her mouth kept working like it wanted to say more, but nothing came out.

“I could ask you the same thing cupcake,” Duo returned softly, still trying to believe what he was seeing.

Aria looked like she was about to either cry or faint. “I thought...” she whispered, but didn’t finish.

“You two know each other?” Quatre asked, looking between the two.

“Something like that,” Aria mumbled, still in shock.

“There are only so many lower sides of L2 Q-ball. The colonies aren’t that big,” Duo answered, as if that explained everything.

“Duo, there are six colonies in L2, not to mention the resource satellites. And that’s just L2. The phrase ‘it’s a small world’ doesn’t really mean much anymore.”

“L1 just ships their unfortunates over to L2. X219755, or the 5th; it’s the only one with a lower side with homeless people,” Duo said sourly. “All the other colonies have done the decent thing and at least set up housing for their less fortunate,” he finished, glad to have something to kick his brain back into working order.

“I thought…” Quatre started. Most colonies had a plan in place for those that were struggling. Especially after the wars, each colony doubled down in an effort to lessen the animosity between their residents to ensure peace.

Duo held up his hand in a dismissive gesture.

“After the revolt of AC 170[1], the people on the 5th gave up,” Aria said softly, as if she were reciting a history lesson from a textbook. “They said it was some sort of a sign. Those that couldn’t provide for themselves shouldn’t be provided for. That’s why I hightailed it to X219723, or the 3rd, after…” she continued but didn’t finish.

“After what?” Quatre asked, still trying to put the puzzle pieces together.

“You know, Quatre, it was very nice of you to invite me for dinner, but I really should get back to my apartment,” Aria dodged, still trying to get a grip on the situation.

“Your loss,” Duo said as he turned to leave, needing an escape.

“I see Maxwell has managed to charm yet another guest,” a voice came from the stairs.

Aria registered the last name Duo had obviously chosen for himself, but chose to make nothing of it for the time being. Not everybody had a last name on the 5th.

“Ah, Wufei, this is Aria Bennett. Aria, this is Chang Wufei,” Quatre said with a smile.

Aria turned to the familiar voice with a smile, thankful for a distraction.

“Miss Bennett, what a nice surprise,”

“Please, Wufei, it’s Aria. We’ve known each other long enough by now I would think,” she said with a small bow.

“Of course,” Wufei said, returning the bow.

“I forgot you live across from Yamane,” Quatre said, trying to get over the shock of her knowing people that lived in his house.

“I didn’t realize you knew each other,” Aria said, looking between the two boys.

“We work together,” was all Wufei supplied.

Aria took a second to process what that meant. She knew Wufei worked with Yamane at Preventers headquarters, and from her conversations with Quatre, she knew he ran WEI. How the two overlapped was a mystery until she rapidly sifted through her research. She figured Quatre must work at Preventers as well due to his past. It took all of her willpower not to squeak at the realization when the second piece fell into place that Wufei’s name was in those files…as well as Duo’s.

“So, you and Duo know each other?” Quatre asked, still trying to process.

“As kids,” Aria answered, breaking herself out of her thoughts.

“Cupcake?” Quatre asked around a giggle.

“My hair used to be shorter and wavy, like frosting on a cupcake,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“Sweet on the outside, bad for you all the way through,” Duo piped up as he came back through the hallway to the stairs.

Aria furrowed her brow. She wasn’t sure where that remark had come from.

Quatre just looked towards Wufei and raised an eyebrow. Wufei just gave a small, one shouldered shrug in return.

“Maxwell, as usual, your uncouthness is showing,” Wufei said.

“I have plenty of tact, thanks. Just trying to warn you that this one is dangerous,” he said with a wink that Aria missed.

“I highly doubt that,” Wufei retorted.

“Oh? And you would know how?” Duo said, clearly in the mood to get a rise out of Wufei.

“She lives across from Yamane. In fact I have come to know Aria well enough. Yamane knows how to pick stable friends. Though, she seems to appreciate your company so I guess there may be cause for concern,” Wufei said, finishing with a small smirk in Aria’s direction.

At that Aria let out a small laugh.

Duo looked a little dumbfounded and then remembered that she had seen Aria at Simpatico with Lulu and Yamane, so it would make sense that Wufei knew her as well.

“Aria, please stay for dinner. I’m sure everybody would love to hear why you’re here,” Quatre said, trying to remind her why she had agreed to come to the house.

“Yes, I suppose that would be a good idea,” she said quietly. “Besides, I’m sure whatever you guys cook up will be better than whatever fast food I end up ordering.”

“I never took you for the fast food type,” Wufei commented.

“Only when the hours I put in at the shop don’t let me make dinner and get enough sleep.”

“Fair enough, but I must correct your statement; we don’t cook.”

“Yeah,” Quatre said slowly. “Sherry is quite the accomplished cook. I’m afraid with our schedules it’s not always feasible to get dinner on the table with one of us cooking.”

“That’s Q-ball’s polite way of saying none of us can cook worth crap,” Duo said, having decided to not retreat into the depths of the house.

It was no mystery that the boys couldn’t cook. Quatre could only be trusted in boiling water for tea and Duo was the master at reheating things in the microwave, if Sherry let him near it. Wufei and Heero could hold their own when making their own food, but it wasn’t more than something to keep them from starving. Trowa was quite possibly the best cook out of them all, but campsite food was hardly something to live off of if you didn’t have to.

“It’s only five thirty, should we head out to the terrace?” Quatre asked with a polite grin at the admission.

“Only if you promise I won’t get lost getting there,” Aria said with a small smile.

* * *

Once out on the terrace, Duo grabbed a chair from around the table and turned it to face the lawn.

“These chairs are much more comfortable if you tip them back like this,” Duo said, leaning his chair back on the rear legs and propping his feet up on one of the cushion boxes.

Aria looked over to Quatre who, despite shaking his head, was smiling. “Most of this stuff is left over from when my father lived here. Actually this place is slated to be renovated in the next month so I didn’t feel the need to upgrade the furniture just yet. Sadly, my father was too busy to sit out here so he never did realize that, despite their looks, they are rather uncomfortable,” he finished with a slight flush. After moving his chair though, he too propped his chair back and kicked up his feet.

Aria shrugged and did the same, which had her facing the pool and the gardens past that. “Quatre, this place is truly beautiful.”

“You haven’t seen the half of it!” Duo piped up before Quatre could answer her.

“Thank you,” Quatre answered, clearly used to Duo’s talkative nature.

“Sherry sent me out with the gift of fruit,” Wufei said as he joined them on the terrace.

“Gift?” Quatre asked.

“More of an apology,” Wufei said as he set the platter down. “Apparently she ran out of something she needed for dinner,” he said, looking pointedly at Duo, “and is running to town to get it. Dinner will be a bit late.”

“She didn’t have too…”

“It was part of the main dish Winner. It’s not like it will be several hours,” Wufei said, cutting off the stubbornness.

Quatre rolled his eyes and settled back in his chair after grabbing a plate and stacking it with pineapple and watermelon. “Anyone know where Trowa is?”

Aria had grabbed a bundle of grapes and had one halfway to her mouth when the answer came.

“Right behind you,” returned the smooth deep voice.

Aria’s chair almost fell backwards, but Duo caught it before it got past the point of no return.

“You okay?” Duo asked.

Aria’s mouth tried to work a response, but came up short and settled to finish her grape. Swallowing, she tried again. “Yeah, sorry.” She turned back to Trowa. “You just looked so much like somebody I used to know, it caught me off guard.”

“Seems to be going around,” Duo mumbled. Aria caught it but ignored it.

“Not to worry. I’m Trowa,” he said, holding out his hand.

“Aria, Aria Bennett,” she said with a smile, trying to recover her dignity. She shook the offered hand, but continued to stare.

“Aria is joining us for dinner,” Quatre informed Trowa. “Oh, that reminds me. Wufei, did you mention that to Sherry before she left?” Quatre asked.

“Yes.”

“Hello to you too,” Trowa deadpanned towards the blond.

Quatre somehow managed to get his hands up behind Trowa’s neck and pulled him down for a kiss. “Hi.”

“Wanton,” Wufei muttered.

“Just because Nene isn’t here doesn’t mean you get to be a spoilsport Wu,” Duo said cheekily.

“Get a room,” came another voice from behind them all.

“Hey Heero!” Duo said, letting his chair fall forward.

Heero didn’t appear to answer Duo, save for a small grunt like noise. Aria watched as the boy circled around the mass of chairs to face her.

“And you are?”

“A guest Heero!” Quatre said, a little annoyed at his friend’s behavior.

“Quatre, it’s okay,” Aria said, shaking her head and standing. She was used to being suspect and scrutinized. “I’m Aria Bennett,” she said, not offering her hand. She seemed to know that the offer wouldn’t be reciprocated.

Moments passed, in silence. All the while, Heero had been looking at her face in great detail and it was making her kind of nervous.

“Do I have something on my nose?”

“Hn.”

Quatre thought he was reacting to Aria more defensively than normal, even for Heero, and he hadn’t even held a real conversation with her yet.

* * *

“Dinner was lovely Quatre. Please give Sherry my compliments,” Aria said, formally placing her fork and knife in the center of her plate.

“Of course,” the blond said with a smile.

Dinner had in fact been delightful. Previously dinner had been slated to be simple burgers with an array of sides ranging from steamed corn to potato salad, chips and dip to fruit salad (she had run out of cheese unexpectedly). Upon learning of a guest for dinner though, Sherry had completely changed the menu for the night. They ended up with lobster tails, steamer clams, a simple tossed salad and bite sized twice baked potatoes. Sherry had made mention of cheesecake for dessert, but they were all too full at the moment to eat another bite.

“Well, I guess now that I have spent the evening in your company and shared a meal, I should introduce myself again.”

“I think you have managed to introduce yourself just fine,” Heero said, sitting back in his chair, watching her again.

“No, I just gave you my name,” she said, standing. “Duo knows me from when we were kids. I know Wufei though Yamane,” Aria smiled briefly at each in turn, and then continued, “However, Quatre is the reason I am here to meet you all.”

She gave a nervous glance over at Duo again and bit her lip. They had only known each other for a short while on the streets, but they had been very close in that short time. Not knowing if she would ever see him again, she wasn’t sure if she’d be ready to say this if she had ever gotten the chance.

Quatre caught the look and cleared his throat. Aria turned her attention to him. He raised an eyebrow as if to ask, ‘Do you need me to do this?’ Aria just shook her head and took a deep breath. Meanwhile, Duo slid a questioning glance to Heero who just gave a minute shake of his head.

“I am here because Quatre found me in one of his hangar bays today. I was working on…” she paused. She knew she had her information correct, even without a formal introduction to Heero. There was just no good way to say this, especially since it had the potential to either put her in jail or get her killed.

“You were working on…what?” Wufei asked. He knew Aria to be bubbly, yet smart. If anything, she was a tad too impulsive. As such, she was very rarely at a loss for words.

“I was working on a mobile suit,” she said, figuring they could ask all the questions they wanted. However nobody said anything.

Quatre cleared his throat again and stood up. “This isn’t an easy topic for any of us, so maybe since Aria is my guest, I should introduce her properly.”

“Quatre, please…” she started, not wanting to put him in an awkward position.

He just gave her a small smile. “Everybody, may I introduce you to Aria Kayla Bennett, designation Pilot 07 of Gundam Keres.”

Heero caught Duo’s chair before it tipped over this time.

“Pilot 07?” Trowa asked after a long pause.

Aria swallowed and nodded, “Yes, if things had gone as originally planned, there were to be two pilots from each colony. After G and O’s sisters either left or were kicked out, the second half was scrapped; Master O keeping the second suit, Professor K, my mentor, building hers in secret. I am the second pilot of L2 colony, only known female pilot.”

“That’s not true,” Trowa said quietly.

Aria just looked at him questioningly.

“Meiran, my wife, was also a pilot,” Wufei said softly. “She died trying to protect our colony.”

“I’m sorry Wufei, I had no idea.”

“No, you wouldn’t have. Up until now, aside from Zero, I thought L5 was the only cluster to have two machines. Because I am the only member of my clan left alive, I am the only one that knew of her heroics, besides the other pilots.”

Quatre had shuddered at the mention of Zero. Aria hadn’t heard of the suit while talking with him, but didn’t pursue that line of conversation.

She explained her situation to the other four, just as she had to Quatre before.

“So you’re a Gundam pilot too, eh cupcake?” Duo asked.

“Have you not been paying attention?” Heero answered.

“Yes,” she answered, ignoring Heero’s interruption. “It’s a long story Duo, but Keres is in pretty bad shape. That’s why I’m here. I had hoped to rebuild her communication and data system so I could do a better job of finding you guys, but I guess I don’t need to fix her to do that,” she finished with a small smile.

“Better?” Heero asked.

“I had names, vague descriptions, but nothing more,” she answered.

“How?” he asked.

“I got into the Preventers systems,” she answered simply.

Heero visibly bristled.

“There are only three other people besides myself that know how to build that kind of security architecture. Once you know how to build it, it’s a lot easier to break in,” she continued.

“And just who else do you think could break into those files?” Duo asked, somewhere between playful and angry. Those files were to be very hidden within the system.

“You,” she said, looking at Duo, “Trowa, and the builder himself; Heero.”

After some more questions and conversation, Aria decided it was time to head out.

“Quatre, thank you so much for having me. Wufei, it was nice seeing you again. Heero, Trowa, it was nice meeting you. Duo...” she said, and then paused. “I can’t believe you’re here,” she said shyly. “Hopefully we can catch up some time?”

“Yeah, I’d like that,” he said with a smile.

“Where are you staying Aria?” Trowa asked.

“Her place is on the North side of town,” Quatre answered for her.

Trowa raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend.

“Howards friend he needed a place for?” Quatre said in an inquiring tone to remind Trowa of his search for a place months before.

“Ah.”

“Yeah. It’s getting late so actually I was just planning on heading back to the port sleeping in the cockpit of Keres and walking back tomorrow.”

“That’s not acceptable,” Heero said flatly.

“Huh?”

“I think what Heero meant is there are extra rooms here at the house,” Quatre corrected, sliding a slight glare in Heero’s direction. “Garry did give you his number right?” he asked Aria.

“Yeah, I just feel guilty. I had already been given way more than I needed.”

“Well I have several spare rooms here. Why don’t I have one made up for you?” Quatre offered.

“Um, thank you,” Aria answered, almost shocked.

Quatre just nodded and stood up to show Aria around a bit.

* * *

“Aria!”

“Hmm?” she answered, turning a questioning glance to the caller.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“I was kind of a brat earlier.”

“Duo, we haven’t seen each other in almost ten years,” she said with a small, yet sad, smile. “You don’t owe me anything,” she finished softly.

“I know,” he chuckled. “And what a surprise it was to see you out with Nene, and then here at Quatre’s,” he said, motioning to the house. “But that doesn’t mean I get to be an ass.”

“You were hardly an ass earlier,” she said with a smile, and then got serious. “An ass is leaving without saying anything and me thinking you were captured, or worse,” she said with a little heat but looking at the floor.

“Wha?” he managed.

She looked back up at him, tears starting to form. “You were the only person I cared about that went missing without me knowing what happened! I was so scared! You never lied, at least not back then, and you didn’t come to meet me!” she finished with a tear tracking down her cheek.

Duo just stared at her, dumbstruck.

“Sorry,” she said, closing her eyes. “It’s been a long day, I don’t know where that came from.”

Without warning, Duo pulled her in for a fierce hug.

“Duo! Mphf!”

“I may run and hide, but I never tell a lie,” he whispered. She smiled into his shoulder, all while holding on tightly. “Solo and most of the adults got sick in that first wave,” Duo said softly. Aria didn’t have to ask what he meant. It had been a miracle her group hadn’t gotten sick, save for a few. “All the kids were taken to Maxwell church, and any surviving adults were taken off to be part of the resistance just before we were supposed to meet,” he said softly.

She pulled back, worry on her face. “You were at Maxwell church?! But I heard it was attacked and that…” she didn’t finish as realization hit her. “You were the only one left. I had overheard that only one person made it.”

Duo looked at the floor, anger and grief warring on his face.

“Oh Duo, I’m so sorry. If I’d had any idea that was you…”

“What, you would have found me to come on another cupcake heist?” he asked with a small smile.

“At least it’s not pink mittens,” she returned flatly, though there was a smile in her eyes.

“I thought girls liked pink!”

“I am no ordinary girl.”

“So I’ve noticed,” he said with a smirk.

Aria leaned in and gave Duo another fierce hug. “I missed you,” she whispered.

“Mphf! I missed you too,” he returned softly. After she let him go, he smiled at her and then his face turned serious. “Please tell me you at least eat some junk food…”

“I’ve known Wufei to be a bit of a health nut, so I stay away from it when he’s around. But I could live off of pizza, candy, and soda and be very content,” she said with a smirk.

“Be still my beating heart!” he said, with the theatrics to go with it.

This just got him a raised eyebrow, though she was still smiling. He waved it off.

“Hey, I’m two doors down. If you want to chat, you know where to find me.”

Aria just smiled and nodded. “G’night.”

“Night cupcake,” he returned and then headed for his room.

* * *

_~Dream~_

“Again.”

Aria moved through the maze of lasers and got a quarter of the way through before catching her leg on one. The material on her thigh singed, leaving a red slice across the flesh beneath. The beams promptly shut off.

“Again.”

Aria straightened and stiffly walked to the beginning of the maze again. The beams turned on again and she started in again. Two feet past the spot she got caught before, she managed to catch her right shoulder with another beam. She let out a muted scream.

“Again.”

Aria made her way through the maze again, this time getting to the halfway point before grazing her calf over a beam. She didn’t fall, but the beams shut off again.

“Damn it!”

“Again.”

Aria started again. Four feet past the halfway point she caught her left upper arm solidly in a beam. The pain caused her to crumple to the floor.

“Again.”

“I can’t.”

“You must. If you want to fly that suit, you need to be trained in every aspect of a mission that may come your way. Infiltration is a key component of some missions.”

“Please, just give me a few days to heal.”

“Some missions come back to back, injury be damned.”

Aria tried to get up and groaned at the pain that shot through her body. Upon further inspection, she realized that the other burns from all the times she failed to get around a laser beam were still open. That combined with all the endurance tests she had been through the last few days, she was about ready to collapse. Her legs were refusing to let her stand.

“Again.”

Aria just groaned.

Professor K showed Aria a small remote she had in her hand. She pressed a button and the beams turned on again, with Aria still crumpled on the floor. They hit their mark and shut off. Professor K hit the button again and Aria let out a scream.

“I said, get up.”

Aria tried again, but only managed to get to her hands and knees. She tried to crawl to the beginning, but that wasn’t good enough for Professor K and she hit the button again. One beam hit Aria square in the hip, a few other grazing over other areas, and she let out another scream and fell to the floor again.

“What part of get up did you not understand?”

Her only answer was a sob. Professor K hit the button again and again and Aria kept screaming, but continued to try to move out of the maze.

_~Dream~_

* * *

Quatre woke with a start. He slowly turned over to find Trowa sleeping peacefully. The movement made the other boy stir though, and he cracked open an emerald eye.

“What’s the matter?” Trowa asked, noting the concern he could read on the blonde’s face.

“I don’t know. Were you dreaming?” Quatre asked as he sat up.

“No…”

“Khara![2]”

“Quatre!” Trowa was shocked at his lover’s use of profanity, especially in his native tongue.

“I thought I had just gotten better at…blocking…the others out.”

“What has you so upset?”

“It was just so…strong.”

“What was?”

“The pain, hurt, frustration.”

“Why did you ask if it was me?”

Quatre just ran a hand over his face and into his hair.

“Quatre…”

“I always keep myself open to you. Even when we’re sleeping.”

Trowa gave him a look of understanding laced with annoyance.

“It’s not full on open. But believe me, I can tell when you’re having a rough night.”

“And I appreciate your concern, but I promise, I wasn’t having bad dreams. Actually, thanks to that after dinner treat, I was sleeping quite well,” Trowa finished with a small grin.

This got a small smile from the Arab, but he shook his head, trying to get a grip on what woke him.

“It was definitely a past trauma. But I can’t figure out who it is.”

“You don’t normally have issues figuring out who it is. Is everything…”

“Yes, I’m fine,” Quatre cut Trowa off, unintentionally being harsh. “I’m sorry. I just don’t want you worrying.”

“Well, then go through the process you did when figuring us all out.”

“It’s female…”

“We know a fair amount of women,” Trowa said, somewhat sardonically.

“It’s not my sisters.”

“So that leaves Relena, Dorothy, Anne, Sally, Lu, Hilde, Yamane, and Mari.”

“And Aria,” Quatre added.

Trowa just nodded, not sure he was ready to add her to the list of familiar people.

“It’s not Sally, Yamane or Hilde. Their training wasn’t severe enough for this kind of pain. I’d hate to think Dekim put Mari through anything that rough but we may never know what that monster did to her. Relena was brought up in a normal stable home so I know it’s not her. Dorothy is nuts, but I doubt it’s a result of torture.”

“That leaves us with Anne, Lu and Aria. Possibly Mari.”

“I think we can rule Mari, Lu and Anne out. The ages don’t seem right.”

“Aria,” they said together.

“Oh Trowa, I was hoping since she had a woman for a mentor that maybe her training was more…lenient.”

“If she is who she says she is, she was a Gundam pilot just like us, Quatre. I know it hurt us all in some way, but it seems like she has come out on the other side of it, for better or worse. We all carry our own demons.”

“I know, but for some reason I feel so protective of her already and I just wished she had been spared.”

“Is she okay now?” Trowa asked, trying to get the subject off the wars. It was not something he needed on his mind while drifting back to sleep.

“I think so,” Quatre said after a pause. “Now that I know who it is, I can block her out.” He was lying, but didn’t want to trouble Trowa over this right now. If Aria had been any closer than down the hall, he might have seen just what she was dreaming about. The only other time that had happened was when Catherine had been staying with them while on vacation. Though, her dream was fear about possibly hurting somebody during an act, not being hurt.

Trowa knew Quatre was still rattled, but let it drop. Two in the morning was not a good time to argue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1There may be a side story coming for this. Basically, the poor people tried to take over the colony and caused mass chaos and almost imploded the colony. After that, the poor were left poor because they had kicked the gift horse, so to speak.[return to story]
> 
> 2Basically ‘shit’ in Arabic.[return to story]


	5. Double Dip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aria spends the day with Duo, with an unexpected ending.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next few chapters are days that Aria spends with the other pilots, getting to know each other. Keep in mind that, while they fought in the wars, they are still teenagers, so they can be emotionally all over the place sometimes. ~_^

_I remember, I remember those days_   
_Laughing out loud, staying up too late_   
_Staring out the window whilst I see your face_   
_I remember, I remember those days (I remember those days)_

Those Days - Lindsey Stirling ft. Dan and Shay

_**May AC 197** _

“You seriously want to spend the rest of the day at my place?”

“Well, not all of it. I mean, Quatre’s place might take a week to go through, and it’s getting renovated, so there’s no point in going there. I was glad you called, and that I had the day off.”

“Well, don’t expect much from me. I left it all on the 3rd or Mars, not that I had much at either place. The majority of stuff that’s here was Quatre’s doing.”

“Meh.”

“Oh, quick note,” she said, her hand poised above the doorknob, “once I open the door, get in fast. I’m harboring an escape artist.”

Duo just raised an eyebrow. Aria put her key in the lock and squeezed in the door, not opening it all the way. Duo followed suit and shut the door promptly.

A small black blur made its way from some yet unknown part of the apartment to the entryway and jumped up on the narrow table by the door. After ascending the furniture, the tiny black cat sat as still as a statue, looking at Aria.

“Hi Java,” she said cutely, petting the small creature.

“Isn’t java brown?” Duo said, regarding the cat with an air of distrust.

“Well, it looks black in a cup, but in the sun it looks brown. Same with her. When she sprawls in a sun spot, she looks brown. I was going to call her Nightmare, but I figured that was cruel.”

The cat hopped back down to the floor and stretched, displaying four sets of nicely sharpened claws.

“Wonderful,” Duo said dryly.

“Not a cat person?” Aria asked as she made her way into the kitchen to set the few bags down and start on lunch. “Oh, there’s juice, hard cider, and beer[1] in the fridge if you want something. The water is filtered too. Glasses are up to the right of the sink.”

“Normally I love them, but I get the impression you should have stuck with the first name you chose.” After a pause, he followed into the kitchen and got himself a glass of orange juice.

“If that were the case, she’d be going by Goober,” she said as she pulled out a few pans.

Duo just about choked on his drink. “Goober?” he asked after he recovered.

“I didn’t know what to call her at first, so I just observed her until a name came to me, but I called her Goober until then.”

Duo gave a small snort and leaned against a counter, making sure to stay out of her way.

“We’re only 17. How did you manage to get beer?”

“They’re called boobs Duo,” she said, looking at him like it was the most obvious answer. When he didn’t answer, she started to giggle. “The guy at the store on the far corner knows war types and doesn’t ask questions,” she managed between laughs, laughing harder when he joined in.

After they both recovered, he said, “So, I don’t cook. I can’t even begin to formulate what we’re having for lunch based on what you picked up.”

“Hmm? Oh,” she said with a smile. “You like fish, right?”

“Not a huge fan, but I’ll try anything once.”

“Good. I had this once, and I’m not a fish person either, but this was good.”

“What is it?” Duo tried again.

“Tomato, cherry and mango couscous, broiled salmon and a mango sauce.”

“That sounds like a lot of work.”

“Not when you buy frozen mango chunks and pitted, partially dried cherries. That and I had the guy at the fish counter cut the portions of fish for me. I just let the mango thaw and then heat up in the water for the couscous. Measuring everything actually takes longer than cooking it all,” she finished with a smile.

“The fact that you know all that blows my mind.”

“I’m sure if you paid any attention in home economics, you’d be able to cook too,” she said with a smirk.

“Maybe, but I’d never come up with…that,” he said, pointing at what was becoming lunch.

“That,” she said, pointing to her phone that was displaying the recipe, “is something I had while at lunch with a friend and he gave me a link to the recipe. He added the cherries though.”

Lunch was made in quick order and they sat down at her small table to eat. Java had tried to beg a piece of salmon off of Aria while cooking, but now that it was coated in mango sauce, she wanted nothing to do with it when Duo tried to offer her a bit on the sly.

“Who knew; I like salmon,” Duo said as he ate the last bite on his plate.

Aria just smiled. “If you want more, I cooked a few extra pieces and there is more than enough couscous left.”

“Nah, that was plenty. And it was wonderful.”

“Thanks,” she said, now getting up and clearing away the dishes. While fixing lunch, she had pretty much cleaned up as she went so all she had to do was package the leftovers and put the rest of the dishes in the dishwasher.

They made their way over to the couches to relax and digest a little while. They sat in silence; Duo on one, staring out the window and Aria on the other with her knees tucked up to her chest petting the cat that had curled up at her feet.

“It’s a little odd...” she started, but didn’t know how to finish.

“What is?” Duo answered, still looking out the window.

“That…that we…somehow both ended up in the same place after doing essentially the same thing,” she said, finishing quickly.

The corner of Duo’s mouth twisted up in a small smile. “The universe has some odd plans.”

“I thought that after you left, or I thought you left, I’d never see you again. Then I lost…” she paused and swallowed. “I thought my life was meant to be spent alone. I’m sure I would have made friends eventually, and have a few here, but with my history, it would have all been a lie.”

Though it was only a few sentences, it spoke volumes. Outside of Preventers, there was always a cover story about their whereabouts during the war and where they worked. Even outside of being a Preventer agent and a Gundam pilot, unless you were rich, nobody wanted to hear how you grew up, so it was best to not even mention it. That and Duo had lost a great deal in his young life and had barely trusted Howard to be a friend. Then he met the other pilots and he felt he belonged. With the other guys, he could be the God of Death, and they understood it more than anybody else with personal demons could. Even Hilde, Yamane and Chad couldn’t quite grasp it all.

“The sad thing? Death is what brought me here,” she continued.

That simple phrase had Duo looking at her questioningly.

“I mean, due to the series of deaths around me, I made it to the 3rd and thus to Kai to be trained,” she finished, feeling the shift in the room.

“It’s funny what death can do,” he said quietly, returning his gaze towards the window.

At this Aria looked up. For that moment, Duo seemed a lot older than he was and very transparent, not that he tried not to be. She saw the pain that haunted him, but the happiness that he had found…and something else she couldn’t place. Then he smirked, more to himself, and everything was back to normal. She gave a small laugh from the back of her throat and got up to look out the window.

“Those clouds look really dark,” she commented, frowning.

Duo got up to take a better look outside. Admittedly, he had been staring off at a nondescript point before, not taking in the actual weather. Just as he got up, lightning bounced from one cloud to another in the distance.

“Oh yes! Finally, a good storm!” he said, getting excited.

Aria just looked at him like he’d lost his mind.

“Oh come on, I know you’re new here, but you know what storms are, right?”

“I know what they are,” she retorted, slightly insulted. “I’ve only been on Earth for a few months, remember? I haven’t actually seen one yet,” she finished quietly.

“Oh man! Then I know what we’re doing this afternoon!”

Aria just raised an eyebrow. Just as Duo made to answer, there was a rumble of thunder from the previous lightning bolt and Aria instinctively ducked in on herself, her hand going to the small of her back.

“Easy there killer,” Duo said around a giggle. “It’s just thunder. It will happen a lot more and a lot louder as this storm comes in. The lightning is what you want to be afraid of, but a gun won’t help.”

Aria just gave him a ‘no duh’ look. “So what exactly are we doing?”

Duo was already on his way to the door. “We’re going to watch it come in! That and I have to put the top on the Jeep before it pours,” he said, grabbing his keys.

* * *

“We are soaked!”

“Good thing I carry spares with me,” Duo said nodding to the bag he carried.

“It’s a good thing we didn’t go too far from my place. Any longer and I’m not sure any length of hot shower could thaw me out!”

“Who would have thought you would have wanted to stand out in that!”

Aria just smiled and unlocked the door to her place. “It was thrilling! Up on the colonies it just rains and they piped in storm sounds occasionally, remember? This was true nature!” she said, and then shivered. “It’s a good thing I thought to buy extra towels when I got here,” she said as she entered.

“Quatre didn’t have this place stocked?” he asked as he shut the door quickly, remembering the little black shadow that lived there.

“He ran out of time. I’m surprised he got this far in four days, and that’s if Howard got a hold of him as soon as I came aboard.”

“Fair enough. Speaking of said towels, where might I find some?”

“Oh, um, the cupboard in the bathroom. Feel free to take a shower. I know your place is on the other side of town. No need to wait till you get all the way over there to get warm,” she said, stripping off her shoes and socks as she made her way into her bedroom.

Duo paused at her door. Aria just turned and looked at him. Seeing the question on his face, she inclined her head towards the bathroom. “This place isn’t meant for guests, remember? You gotta go through here to get to the shower.”

“Right,” he answered, giving himself a mental shake.

She led him in and showed him where the towels were.

“And take as long as you need. This place seems to have an endless hot water tank,” she said, grabbing her own towels and heading back into her room. “Oh, and just leave your wet stuff in a sink! We can wash it later!” she called through the closed door.

“I can face the wall if you wanna use the tub!” he called back. “You’ll get sick if you don’t…” he stopped as Aria opened the door, already wrapped in her towel. “…get warm,” he finished, though quieter.

“I can…wait…” was all she could say.

“Hey, my clothes are already wet. I’ll just wear them into the shower. We’ll work out how we get out of here later. I just don’t want either of us sitting around cold and miserable.”

“Okay,” she finally said. “No peeking,” she added as she made her way over to the tub to get the water started.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” he said with a wink and then made his way into the shower.

“Oh, hold on,” she called, but he already had his shirt off. She noticed a decent sized tattoo of a cross and a beam scythe on his back.

“Hmm?” he said, turning around.

“I…umm…” she stammered and then blushed. She reached for a button, and the glass door to the walk in shower became instantly frosted. In doing so, she missed his smirk.

Between the shower and the tub, they managed to produce enough steam that neither of them could see the other in the mirror even if they had tried to peek. Duo made his way out of the shower first, grabbing his towels and changing in the bedroom. He called an all clear to Aria when he was decent and made his way to the living room so she could get dressed.

After getting the all clear, she drained the tub and slipped into her pajama pants and a loose shirt. She finger combed out her hair and was still working out the last of the knots as she made her way back into the living room.

“Hey…whoa…”

“What?” she said, immediately self-conscious.

“You have hair.”

“Yes, most people do…” she said, relaxing a bit.

“No, I mean, earlier, it was shorter.”

Aria let out a little laugh. “You saw it at the club, remember?”

He nodded in acceptance. While it had been a feature that had caught his attention, it hadn’t been defining, considering everything else that had gone on that night.

“I have had it up like I normally do when I am working on Keres. It’s easier that way; and it stays out of my way.” In truth, she had had it up in various twists and knots that she used to keep it out of her way. It was actually hard to tell how long her hair was until it was fully down like this.

He blinked rapidly for a moment. “It’s almost as long as mine…Wow,” he said with a chuckle and then looked at her with confusion.

“What?”

“Your hair was short as a kid.”

“Yeah, I remember the nickname, thanks,” she said sarcastically.

“No, I mean, I lost a good foot of mine due to a bad accident in the scrapyard between the wars but…”

“Yeah…” she said with a flush. “Lacey managed to find us vitamins at some point. Apparently they were expired prenatal vitamins and our hair and nails grew like weeds.”

Duo lost his battle containing his laughter.

“Oh shush,” she said, though she was giggling along with him. “I was actually thinking of cutting it short, or at least shorter, here soon. As much as I’d miss it, it’s beginning to be more of a hassle.”

“Don’t,” Duo said quietly.

“Why?”

“Long hair suits you.”

* * *

“I’ve been working on this thing for a year. I have replaced just about all there is to replace at some point. But every now and then it has a mind of its own and just won’t start,” Duo said, kicking the tire of his Jeep.

“Should we call somebody?” Aria asked.

“Eh, I’ll just grab a cab. I can come back for it tomorrow.”

“You know, the couches are pretty comfy. I can take one and you can have the bed. We can order pizza and find some old cheesy movie to make fun of on the TV,” she said after a moment.

“Nah. I wouldn’t want to impose.”

“Right, because a few more hours would just be too much,” she said playfully, rolling her eyes. “Come on. The pizza place down the road piles their topping so high the dough just barely gets cooked enough to hold it all.”

“Meat lovers?”

“Is there any other kind?”

“Marry me,” he said, dramatically.

Aria just raised an eyebrow with a laugh, and turned to head back to the apartment.

* * *

He couldn’t sleep. It’s not that the couch was uncomfortable; Quatre had great taste. His restlessness wasn’t even due to being in a foreign place. He couldn’t place it, but his mind wouldn’t disengage enough to let him sleep. Something that Aria had said before had really struck him though. Neither of them had anybody from their pasts before being chosen to be Gundam pilots and death had been fuel for the paths they chose, both separate, yet the same.

He finally admitted to himself that, back then, he had a crush on the girl. It had been one of those innocent young crushes where they would hold hands and he’d feel like he was on top of the world because _he_ had a pretty girl to be friends with. Somebody in his group had once said they were the flash and bang of a firework. When asked what that meant, he was told that you always get a flash and bang when you light a fuse. He still didn’t understand, but didn’t ask anybody else until he was in Father Maxwell’s care. The priest had explained to him that sometimes people search for their other half to become whole, but you can live as that half until you find the one that completes you. You don’t get fireworks with just a flash or a bang; you have to have both. Duo took that to mean that nothing fun was going to happen until he found another flash to his bang and went on with his childlike amusement.

As he grew older, he realized that she had actually been the one person he compared others to. Some had come close, but the one thing most of his other partners lacked was her fire. No matter what, she had always kept her head up and kept going. Even at a young age, he saw that. Those that had that trait lacked the rest of the personality. Granted, she had been cute, but until recently, he had no idea what she had turned out to look like; and looks only got you so far so he never bothered to compare. That’s not to say he was disappointed when he saw her at Simpatico, but he also had to remind himself that, like looks, people change. After they reunited though, he soon learned that she was still feisty as ever and could keep up with his quips better than anybody. The thing that struck him though, was the underlying vulnerability. He figured he was too young to see it the last time they were around each other, but he felt the overwhelming want to protect her now. Though, with her spirit, he’d be lucky to even open a door for her without getting some sort of glare that said, ‘I am perfectly capable of doing that myself, thank you very much,’ and then be left standing there alone.

In his pre-teen years, he had resigned himself to losing anybody he was close to. So when all five pilots and Hilde had made it through both wars relatively intact, he had been legitimately shocked, almost waiting for the other shoe to drop. Eventually he accepted that his theory had, in fact, been shot to hell. He told himself that, simply, the wars had broken the streak. That was, until Aria showed up in Quatre’s hallway. With that, he better accepted Quatre’s reasoning that he was just in the wrong place at the right time for his survival. It had cost him a lot, but it meant that he was around to literally save the world and then live to see the results.

Giving up on sleep, he changed into his street clothes and decided to make a trip to the bathroom before slipping out for a walk. Aria had left her door cracked open so that Duo could slip in to get to the ‘world’s most inhospitable bathroom’ as she called it. Once in the doorway though, he paused. The small amount of light from the other room cast over the girl sleeping in the bed and he felt a warm sensation wash over him. He wasn’t sure if it was just because one of his childhood friends was back in his life, or the fact that he was feeling more and more complete now that he had replayed his connection with her over in his head. It didn’t much matter though, and he smiled, simply satisfied knowing she was okay and had made it to this point. That and, despite being a trained assassin, she was sleeping in a manner that clearly suggested she had simply passed out from exhaustion in a rather untidy sprawl on her stomach. A further look over had him noticing that she had clearly changed her pajama pants to boy shorts before climbing into bed and that, despite having to buy things for herself, she had splurged on black silk sheets.

She made a small noise in her sleep and rolled partially onto her side, her upper torso rolling more so than her lower half. One of her hands settled on the pillow with her fingers perfectly curled so her pinkie was almost touching her palm and the other three fractionally less curled than the one before it, almost as though she stopped mid wave. Duo held his breath for a moment to see if he had actually woken her, but when she didn’t stir further, he released the breath and relaxed. It was then that he noticed a small stuffed animal she had been sleeping with. It was a very tattered, well loved bunny, that had clearly been patched a few times over. Upon seeing it, he sucked in a small gasp. In that instant, he heard a click signaling that a gun was no longer “safe” and he hit the floor.

“Duo? Crap! I’m sorry!” she called, panicked as she put her gun away.

“My bad,” he said into the carpet.

“No, I just can’t seem to get over the habit,” she said sadly.

“No worries,” he said, standing and pulling a similar weapon from the back waistband of his jeans and showing it to her.

“You’re dressed?”

“Yeah, I couldn’t sleep so I was going to go for a walk.”

“I was sincere when I said you can take the bed. I have fallen asleep out there before.”

“It’s not that. I just can’t get my brain to shut off.”

“Oh. All right. The spare key is in the drawer of the table by the door. Don’t worry about waking me when you come back, I’ll recognize the key in the lock.”

“Get some sleep, I’ll be back soon. Just need to wear my mind out a bit,” he said with a lopsided grin.

* * *

As he rounded the corner back to Aria’s place, he looked up to see if she was still up or if she had gone back to sleep. The lights in her apartment were off but the balcony door and screen were wide open.

“That’s odd,” he whispered to himself. “Java wouldn’t think twice about getting out this way.” For some reason, that thought alone made him uneasy. She was obviously very fond of the feline and wouldn’t be so careless as to leave an escape route for the little demon. As if on cue, the little fluff ball wound around and through his feet.

He leaned down to pick her up and she instantly settled in his arms. Thankfully she was still small enough that she fit into his inner jacket pocket and didn’t put up a fight when he transitioned her there.

He then pulled the gun from his waistband and crept up the stairs to her door. There were marks on the frame where the door had obviously been forced open. He flattened himself against the wall and listened for noise, and not hearing any, he pushed the door open.

The place was an absolute mess. All the furniture had been overturned, dishes broken and even her vid screen looked like somebody had punched their fist through it.

“What the hell?”

After clearing the bedroom, the closet, the bathroom and closing the balcony doors, he went across the hall and knocked on Yamane’s door. He didn’t get an immediate answer and started to get worried.

“Yamane! If you’re in there, please answer the door!” he called, with another knock.

“Coming!” she yelled through the door. She opened it a fraction and looked down the hall. “I think that’s the first time in a long time you’ve used my real name,” she said with a smile.

“No games tonight Nene. Aria’s place is a mess. Have you heard from her?”

“Duo?” came a voice from inside the apartment.

“Thank god!” he exclaimed, pushing past Yamane to get in. Aria was curled up on the couch, clearly trying to keep herself awake to talk. He knelt down in front of her. “What the heck happened?”

“I’m not really sure. I heard somebody at the door and I figured it was you trying to get back in or something…”

“You gave me a spare, remember?”

“Yeah, well after I heard the door get smashed in, I heard two voices and them smashing stuff. I made for the balcony to get to Mane’s place before they knew I was even there. Crap, Duo, what about Java?”

“Right here,” he said, producing the sleeping ball of fluff from his pocket. Aria visibly relaxed and scooped the cat into her lap.

“Thank you,” she said, tiredness starting to creep back into her voice.

“Nene, did you hear anything?” he asked, standing and turning to the other girl.

“Nope,” she said with a yawn. “Woke me from a dead sleep when she knocked on my window. We both heard some rather loud crashes after that though.”

“Yeah, the place is completely trashed.”

“Fuck,” Aria said, resting her head in her hand.

“Listen, Quatre is already off planet and Trowa is with him and the house is completely gutted. Heero and Wufei are pulling night shifts. I want both of you to come back to my place, at least for tonight.”

“Duo, we’re fine here,” Yamane said.

“Nene, you know better. Wufei would never forgive me if I didn’t help protect you…”

“I am a damn Preventer agent, Maxwell!” she yelled, stressing the word ‘agent’. “One of these damn days he might actually get that,” she huffed.

“I know you are and I’m sure that’s why Aria came over here, but who knows who or what they were really looking for.”

“I came over here because she’s a friend shithead,” she spat. She did not like the implication that neither she or Yamane could care for themselves. “I was a Gundam pilot too ya know,” she added to make a point. She figured Wufei had already told Yamane.

"Say that again?" Yamane said, not sure she heard right.

"I…" Aria started.

"Not now," Duo interrupted.

“I’ll leave that one alone for now then,” Yamane answered, noting the tension.

“Anyway, we are perfectly capable of taking care of ourselves,” Aria reaffirmed.

“It’s not up for debate,” Duo snapped.

“Fine, let me get a bag together,” Yamane said, rolling her eyes.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Aria said stubbornly.

“Why are you being difficult?”

“They already came and went. It should be fine to go back.”

“Maybe you didn’t hear me; your place is trashed. They even turned up the mattress.”

Aria just gave him a look that said ‘Like I care.”

“You set Nene?” he called.

“Yep,” she answered, returning to the living room still in her pajamas but carrying a bag.

“Stay here a moment?”

“Sure...” she answered questioningly.

Duo just flashed her a grin and took off out of the apartment. Ten minutes later, he returned with his bag and another duffel slung over his shoulder and a cat case in the other hand.

“Duo, I’m not going anywhere. Clearly I didn’t have whatever they were looking for.”

“You’ll go if I have to carry you.”

“Fine,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Nene, can you put Java in here,” he said, putting the cat case down.

Yamane nodded, grabbed the case, and gently put the still sleeping cat inside.

Aria just glared at her. “Traitor.”

“Hey, I can take care of myself. However, you weren’t there and who knows what they wanted. They could come back later, and I for one don’t want to explain bullet holes to the landlord, nor deal with the paperwork that goes with discharging my firearm while not on duty,” Yamane stated matter-of-factly.

Aria just stuck her tongue out and settled further back onto the couch. “Have fun you two,” she said sweetly.

Duo just nodded his head to the cat case which Yamane picked up. “It won’t be a party without you,” he replied, putting on a fake pout. With that, he bent down and picked Aria up, laying her over his shoulder.

“Hey!”

“I told you, it wasn’t an option. Nene, if you please, the keys are in my back pocket and the Jeep is right out front.”

Yamane just rolled her eyes. “You’re such a child,” she said as she grabbed the keys and waited for Duo to clear the door before she locked up and got ahead of them to open the Jeep door.

“And that’s why you love me.”

“Put me down!”

“I will once we get to the car. Nene, why don’t you hop in back with the demonic fur ball,” he said with a devious glint in his eyes. She complied and settled the cat carrier on top of the bags in the back and shut the door behind her. Once she was in, Duo opened the door and managed to get Aria into the front without much fuss and closed and locked the door with the remote.

“Oh, really?!”

Duo just smiled and unlocked his door with the key. “I got you this far, wouldn’t want you to slip away. Setting off the alarm would draw too much attention,” he finished with a wink.

“You got me this far, thus I just give up,” she said rolling her eyes.

“Seriously guys, could you grow up just a bit?” Yamane asked from the backseat.

Duo just smirked while Aria settled into the seat and grumbled something inaudible in what he suspected was French. He prayed that the Jeep was done having a temper tantrum and tried the key. Thankfully, whatever was wrong earlier had resolved itself and the Jeep roared to life.

The rest of the ride across town was spent in silence. Once there, Duo looked to see both girls sleeping. He grabbed the bags and the cat and went to unlock his door. It was at this moment he thanked whatever god it was that led him to the two bedroom apartment. He checked to make sure there were clean sheets on both the beds and grabbed an extra blanket and his pillow and threw them on the couch.

Yamane was awake when he returned and she just smiled at him.

“Number 27, and the guest room is the one on the left. Door is unlocked and your bag is already in there,” he whispered to her.

“Thanks. You got her?”

“Yep, just head on in. Don’t worry about Wu, I’ll put a call in to the office and let him know you’re here.”

Yamane just smiled through a yawn and went inside.

Duo turned and unbuckled Aria from her seat and carefully extracted her from the passenger seat. She gave a small moan, wrinkled her nose and then settled against his chest, still very asleep. He smiled and proceeded into his apartment and settled her in his bed. After checking in on Yamane and finding her sound asleep, he went out into the hall to make a few vid calls.

“Chang here.”

“Hey Wu,” Duo answered quietly.

“You’re being quiet Maxwell, and it’s late,” came the question in the form of a statement.

“Yeah, just letting you know I have the girls at my place.”

Wufei’s eyes widened a fraction and he raised an eyebrow.

“Somebody busted into Aria’s place while I was out for a walk and when I got back, she was over with Nene. It didn’t look like a normal robbery or smash and grab man, so I thought it best to bring them my way since you and Heero are still working and Tro is on colony with Q-ball.”

“I’m not even going to ask why you were over there, but thank you for informing me. Did you want a squad sent to see who did this?”

“Not just yet. They basically trashed the place, but they seemed to be looking for something specific. They either found it or didn’t but I just didn’t want them there in case the thugs got the wrong place or came back.”

“I’m sure they were both thrilled at the suggestion,” Wufei said dryly.

“Nene’s a good sport, but I did have to literally carry Aria to the car.”

Duo distinctly heard Heero give a small snort in the background.

“Heard that Heero! Anyway, they’re both here and sleeping, but I figured you’d like to know.”

“Thank you Duo. Chang out.”

Duo just smiled and nodded as the connection was cut. Wufei barely used his first name, and when he did, it was because Duo had done something that he actually approved of.

He looked at his watch. Trowa wasn’t going to be happy with the call, but it was almost time for them to be up anyway.

“Barton,” Trowa grumbled.

“What no visual T?” Duo joked.

“Duo, if you’re drunk dialing me, I’m not interested.”

“And if I’m not drunk?”

“Goodbye Duo.”

“No wait! I actually have a reason to call. Is his highness awake?”

“I am now,” came a muffled answer.

“Hey Q. Sorry to wake you guys, but I figured I’d keep you in the loop.”

“About what Duo?” Quatre asked, more awake.

“Some guys broke into Aria’s place while I was out for a walk. She went over to Nene’s to wait for me and I brought them both back to my place. I dunno Quat, it just didn’t feel right. I told Fei to hold off on sending a team, but I figured better safe than sorry.”

“Thank you for letting us know Duo. I have meetings all day today. Can you call around 5, L4 time?”

“Sure, anything specific?”

“No, but I do have a lot of work to get done so I’m going to have to be up here an extra week before the summit. I wanted to spend some time with Aria so I just want to arrange that and talk more details with you as well.”

“No problem. Talk to you later guys!”

“Goodnight Duo,” Quatre said.

“Night Duo,” Trowa said and then hung up.

With that, he let himself back in and flopped on the couch to try and get some rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1They are 17, and in my mind they have changed the legal age to 18 worldwide at this point.[return to story]


	6. Four Times the Amusement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aria's day with Quatre doesn't go quite as planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to all that have read so far!

_Blindly I am following_  
_Break down these walls and come on in_

_I wanna feel the way that we did that summer night_  
_Drunk on a feeling, alone with the stars in the sky_

_I've been running through the jungle_  
_I've been running with the wolves_  
_To get to you, to get to you_  
Wolves - Selena Gomez

_**May AC 197** _

Sleep left Aria slowly. Her body seemed to know she wasn’t in her own place, but where she was now wasn’t familiar. She started by keeping her heartbeat steady and breathing shallow. As she inhaled, she smelled something masculine that she couldn’t place, and then bacon and eggs. Moving her hand slightly, she felt cotton sheets instead of her satin ones. The way the sound was moving around the room, she guessed it was smaller than the one at her apartment and had more things on the wall. Figuring she was safe enough, she took a deep breath and started to wake up fully and that’s when the memory of last night hit her and she let out a groan.

“Oh good, you’re waking up,” came a voice from what she assumed was the door.

Despite the assumption of safety, she jerked awake, clutching the covers to her chest, eyes wide in fear and aiming a gun that wasn’t there at Duo.

“Oops! Sorry, I forgot you don’t wake like normal people,” he said with a smile.

She relaxed a bit, lowering her arm, but not dropping the covers. “I’m not normally in somebody else’s bed when I wake up,” she said, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

“Normally?” he joked.

She just stuck her tongue out at him.

“Come on, breakfast is ready. Nene is already up,” he said as he turned to leave.

“Duo?”

“Hmm?” he answered, turning back to her. He was relieved to see that she had relaxed her grip on his blankets.

“Thank you. I don’t know why I was being a pain last night.”

“No problem! And it was mostly for Nene’s sake. I know you can take care of yourself. I would just never hear the end of it if I had left you two there.”

“Maxwell!” came a voice from the other room, accompanied with a pound on the door.

Duo looked at the clock on his nightstand. “Well shit, Wu got here in record time.” He nodded to a duffel bag on the floor, “Spare clothes are in there; bathroom is at the end of the hall. I’ll keep the food warm for you.”

There was another pound on the door. “Nene, just let him in!” Duo called out of the room.

“Who said I want to?” was the call back, but they both heard the locks get undone and the door open.

A short while later, she made her way into the kitchen to partake of the food that had woken her up.

“We would have waited if you wanted to wash your hair,” Duo said around a mouthful of eggs.

“I’m meeting with Rachel tomorrow,” she said as if it made all the sense in the world.

“Rachel?”

“Yeah, the one that runs the salon on Cedar. I do her books and she massages my scalp. I unclog the drain and she does my toes,” she finished, wiggling her toes that had remnants of lavender paint on them.

“I can’t imagine that running a salon needs that much bookkeeping,” Wufei said.

Aria just eyed him suspiciously.

“Off the record babe?” Yamane asked him.

“Am I in the office?” he shot back sarcastically.

“Means jack shit. And you know I know that.”

“Yes, I am officially off duty today.”

Yamane nodded at Aria that it was safe to explain.

“Okay. She is a partner at Simpatico, but likes to keep the profit margin that shows on her books low because she is caring for her mother. If she earns too much, she gets taxed to high heaven and can’t spare the money she’s forking over for the long term care.”

“And you help her how?” Duo asked.

“I adjust the amount it says she charges for the drinks and admission and say the rest comes from tips that get split. Same with the salon. Since they changed how people get taxed for tips, it looks like she’s earning just enough to be slightly profitable, but not enough to make a fuss over. At this point I mainly make sure the program is running well and fix any glitches, but she still pampers me,” Aria said with a smile.

“You knew about this?” Wufei asked Yamane.

“How do you think I get my nails done? I introduced them!” she said, practically proud.

Wufei just glared at them both.

“Who cooked?” Aria asked, eyeing the food.

“Me,” Yamane said and then bit into her toast.

“Oh, good,” Aria said and started in on the bacon.

Duo and Wufei looked at each other, knowing they had no right to be insulted, but they were still a little put out by the question.

“Alright girls, pack your stuff!” Duo announced once they were done, getting up to clear the plates.

“You kicking us out?” Yamane asked.

“You, for sure,” he said with a wink.

“I have extra room where I am,” Wufei said. “Until we figure out what happened, I don’t feel comfortable with you going back to your apartment.”

“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. I am a damn Preventer agent Wufei,” Yamane practically yelled. “I can take care of myself!”

“Who said I was worried about you?” Wufei returned, slightly agitated.

Yamane opened her mouth as though to say something but stopped when the comment actually registered. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that Une would have your hide and his,” Duo said, canting his head towards Wufei, “if any of us pursued this without her permission and further have a conniption fit if deadly force was used. I don’t even want to go into what would happen if Aria were there,” Duo finished.

“Hey!” Aria protested.

“Sorry cupcake. Personal weaponry isn’t something she’s fond of, licensed or not. Not to mention your history. That one is going to take a lot of strong drinks to explain to her.”

"So I take it I'm not staying?" Aria asked, somewhat sarcastically.

"Your place is a mess. Even if I thought it would be a good idea for you to go back, it's gonna take a bit to get back to habitable. We've all got a security summit in a week, so I'm not going to be here either," Duo explained

"So, where does that leave me?”

“While I don't mind if you stay here, you're headed up with Quatre,” Duo said simply.

“I do _not_ need a babysitter,” she said flatly.

“No, but he is stuck on L4 for an extra week but still wants to spend some time with you. We can iron out the details when I call him back later tonight,” Duo said, almost dismissively.

Aria caught Wufei roll his eyes, but ignored it…for now.

“Fine, just as long as I get my appointment with Rachel tomorrow. The rain did nothing to improve this frizz ball most people call hair.”

* * *

“Aria!”

“Coming Quatre! I couldn't figure out the refresher this morning,” Aria called from behind her door.

Quatre was in the hallway of the modest (by his family’s standards) home.

“Ooo. Nice suit. Are we headed somewhere fancy?” Aria asked, mentally going over her wardrobe options.

“I’m afraid our day out together will have to wait, Blair just called and there are a few things that came up that I have to deal with this morning.”

“Oh,” Aria said, slightly defeated. “It’s okay, the business world waits for no man; or in my case woman,” she finished with a smile.

“Actually, I have a better idea. Do you have any business attire?”

“Umm I think I have a pencil skirt and a blouse that could pass for office wear.”

“Good. Go change and meet me and Trowa downstairs in five,” he said and disappeared down the hall.

* * *

“I feel like a secretary.”

“I think that’s the point.”

“Actually, Trowa, you are going to outline for her what it is you do while I’m at this meeting. This is part of who we are so I think it’s a good idea that she tags along,” Quatre said, coming down the stairs.

Aria looked confused. All she had really wanted was to spend some time with all of the guys, but not necessarily insert herself into their lives. While she had gotten along with them after introducing herself to them, she knew they didn’t owe her anything, especially their time.

“I’m supposed to be guarding you, not teaching somebody how to do it,” Trowa said, “No offence Aria.”

“None taken and I agree,” Aria said with a shrug.

“Well, fine. Just stick to him like glue and observe,” Quatre said to Aria, canting his head towards his boyfriend. “I had promised a day for us to get to know each other and this stuff should be done by lunch. The three of us could go out afterwards.”

“Okay,” Aria said, drawing out the first syllable.

“Here, use this,” Trowa said, handing her a device that looked like an over the ear headphone. “It will look like a note taker’s headset. Pin this somewhere where it can pick up your voice,” he said, handing her a microphone that looked like a simple pin. “It has the Winner insignia on it, that way anybody will know who you’re with. If for whatever reason we get separated, push this and tell me what’s going on,” he finished, handing her a small disc with a button in the middle.

“What is the range on these things?”

“Two miles. Obviously the more walls between you and anybody else with an earpiece, the lower the distance. Most places aren’t a problem because we have enough people around.”

Aria nodded.

“Do you have a pair of mirror sunglasses?”

“The only kind I own,” she said with a smile.

“Grab those, your purse and a notepad.”

“Why would I need a notepad if I have a secretary’s headset?”

“Nobody knows you’re a Gundam pilot, so your photographic memory just makes you look out of place. Even the best of secretaries need notes on looks and general feelings that can’t be recorded through a microphone.”

"How do you know I have a photographic memory?"

"We all do, trained or natural. And you quoted an article from last week verbatim yesterday at breakfast."

“Right,” she said, swallowing.

“When we get to the meeting, I’ll get out first, Quatre will follow me and Steve will follow him. You are going to stay in the limo with Blair as it goes around back. Jason will meet you back there and show you into the meeting room.”

Aria just gave him a look.

“Believe me, I know. I had to play the role of publicist for a month before Heero and I overhauled the security team.”

“That bad?”

“He nearly got shot. Had I not been there, he would have been.”

Aria looked at Trowa with wide eyes.

“That’s not normal. He was backing a controversial research project and some people took issue with it. Today is just finance reform for a normal project, but apparently some deadlines got overlooked so things need to be re-worked before anything else gets delayed.”

“Good. Not that I’m not up to protecting him, it’d be just one heck of a first outing.”

“One more thing.”

“Yeah?”

“The media doesn’t know about Quatre and me. Most of the Preventers and other close personnel do, but a lot of dignitaries don’t.”

“Why not, and how have you managed to keep this quiet for…?”

“Almost two years now and having him appear available, or at least attainable, helps his image.”

“Or so says his current publicist,” Aria quipped.

Trowa just rolled his eyes. “Test your com for me.”

“Testing, one two,” she said, looking to the opposite shoulder than where her “pin” was placed.

“Good, it’s close enough,” he said and turned to head for the limo.

With a sigh, Aria followed him.

* * *

“Trowa, you said it was a financial meeting...”

“It is, it just happens to be about a new colony for L5,” Quatre answered.

“Merde![1]” she huffed.

“It’s no big deal, really.”

“No big deal?! The press alone is more than I was expecting, nevermind the bigwigs that are going to be here," she said nervously. Considering some of the circles she used to entertain, she didn't want to risk being recognized.

The limo pulled up to the drop off point in front of the building of a partner company and Aria could see the flashes start even before Steve stepped up to open the door. Once the door was opened, the flashes increased and Aria realized why Trowa had suggested the sunglasses; they weren’t just so people couldn’t see where you were looking, but so you could see where you were going under the maelstrom of paparazzi camera bursts.

“Mr. Winner! Why were these important dates overlooked?”

“Mr. Winner! Does that mean you don’t fully support the building of the new colony?”

Trowa had already made it out of the limo and was facing the crowd, giving Quatre just enough room to get out without being too exposed. Questions were raining down on him about the meeting and why things were playing out like they were, clearly ignoring the fact that it was an oversight on several companies’ part.

“You’ll get used to it,” Trowa said over the com.

“I think I understand why Wufei doesn’t watch the news,” she answered before Steve closed the door.

If she had been up front with him, she would have seen Trowa’s lips twitch in a small smirk.

* * *

The meeting went smoothly, but it was a long one. Each dignitary’s secretary (or secretaries) sat just behind their employer, while the security personnel were along the wall.

“Aria, they are about to wrap up. You and Blair will be coming out the front with us,” Trowa whispered over the com.

Aria made a hand motion that was similar to “why” in sign language behind her chair.

“It’s quicker and there was a lot of press out there. Another pair of eyes won’t hurt. Jason, how is the front looking?” Trowa asked, clearly having left the room ahead of the others.

“Cleared out a bit. Enough to ask plenty of questions though. Are we heading straight for the limo or answering questions?” Jason responded.

“Not sure. The meeting went smoothly enough that any questions could be dealt with. We’ll see what he wants to do,” Trowa answered.

At that, members of the meeting stood, turning to their respective secretaries and security guards. Quatre made his way over to the group he brought with him as Trowa reentered the room.

“Press time?” Trowa asked.

“As long as they don’t get nasty,” Quatre answered with a smile.

“Jason, we’re doing press as long as they play nice. Steve, have Garry get in queue, but we don’t have to be first,” Trowa instructed as they made their way through to the hall. He turned to Aria. “We wait inside until the driver is two limos down. That gives each person time with the press and time for us to answer questions and then have the limo at the curb by the time we’re done,” Trowa explained.

“We’re eighth in line,” Steve said over the com.

“Who’s ahead of you?” Trowa asked.

“Robins is a couple cars up,” was the answer.

Trowa mouthed the answer to Quatre so he knew who to follow. Quatre gave a small nod and went over to the portly man and struck up a conversation. The line of people was moving fast though; clearly not many of them wanted to admit they had screwed up on such a large scale. Mr. Robins made nice when Quatre approached but soon made it clear that he was in no mood to talk.

“Who’s after Mr. Robins?” Quatre asked Trowa as he approached Trowa and Aria.

“Lamontaine,” Trowa answered after asking Steve.

“Great,” the blond muttered. He plastered on a diplomatic smile and made his way to the taller gentleman. It always forced the press to stay away from personal matters when people left in pairs. He knew Lemontaine would chat with the press any chance he got and that Robins would dive for his state car as fast as he could.

Quatre and Mr. Lemontaine made their way to the door, and Jason and one of Lemontaine’s guys led the way; Trowa, Aria and Lemontaine’s staff followed the pair. Aria had caught a glimpse of the press when they had dropped Quatre off so she thought she was ready for the barrage, but when Lemontaine’s people pushed past the media, Quatre was left alone on the walkway and they came at him with full force.

The questions from before continued for a moment, but some of the press noticed the new person at Quatre’s side and they started asking personal questions. Aria hadn’t been paying attention to the nature of the inquiries, so when one reporter shoved his way towards them from Quatre’s other side, Aria instinctively put a hand at the small of his back to direct him away from the invasion. It seemed that every reporter caught the action and instantly started asking about his dating life.

“Mr. Winner! Is this a new date?”

“Quatre! Are you now off the market?”

“Young lady! How does it feel to be dating one of the most sought after bachelors?”

“Have you and Mr. Winner been dating long?”

“Does the family approve? Have you been keeping it from them?”

Aria found several cameras and recorders shoved in her face as she took her mind off all the possible sniper positions. She schooled her face immediately, but behind her glasses, her eyes were wide. Jason stepped up next to her and started to back the press away enough for her and Quatre to move.

“Just keep walking, don’t give them anything, and follow close,” Trowa’s stern voice came over the com.

Aria made to move and found more press moving in to ask her and Quatre more questions. She had to resist the urge to shove them out of her way harshly.

“Steve, are you and Garry in place? Press just got ugly,” Trowa barked into the com.

“Yep, Lemontaine and Robins wanted to split as fast as they could.”

Aria heard the answer and tried to make for the limo but the media wasn’t giving up.

“People, please. We have another meeting to get to. I’d hate to be late,” Quatre spoke up, trying to get the press to back down a bit. Steve jumped out of the limo and helped Jason with the crowd while Trowa ushered Blair, Quatre and Aria towards the limo in the hole provided.

“What the hell was that?!” Aria practically yelled once the door to the limo was shut.

“Clearly somebody that left ahead of us gave them all they needed from the meeting. Personal affairs are always more juicy anyway,” Quatre said, like it was no big deal.

“It’s going to be all over the press now! All I did was follow you out of a meeting! Like you would bring a date to a meeting!”

Quatre gave an amused snort at that.

“Don’t worry about it, it will blow over soon enough,” Trowa said, like he had been through this before.

“And this doesn’t bother you at all?” Aria asked Trowa, somewhat sarcastically.

Trowa sighed. “Because I know the truth; no, not at all.”

Quatre grabbed Trowa’s hand. “It hasn’t been easy, but up until recently, it has been better if I appear available…”

“Yeah, I got the briefing,” Aria muttered.

“…because I had a lot of negotiations that might have required a date or two to get where I needed to be,” Quatre finished.

Aria just gave the blond billionaire a look.

“I may be in charge of one of the most successful companies on Earth and the Colonies, but because of my age, I had to earn respect of a few of the older company owners. There are still people that like to do things the old fashioned way; a date with their daughter for a donation or political backing. Ask Relena; she’s been on more political favor dates than either of us can count,” Quatre finished with a sigh.

“As in Vice Foreign Minister Relena Dorlain?”

“Yeah, she’s a good friend, thanks to Heero.”

“Wow. Okay, so you said up until recently. Why has that changed?”

“Well, with the favors that were asked on these so called dates, it has been my name and my name only as the head donor on these projects. Long story short, with the building of this new colony, I am no longer in the position to need favors by personal matters.”

“So why not say something today when they were asking about me?”

“I have been at Quatre’s side for almost two years. What would that say if he were to all of a sudden announce that we had been dating?” Trowa answered the question he knew was coming.

“I didn’t say come out to the world, but adding one more girl to the list won’t help matters when you finally decide to do so,” Aria quipped back.

“We’re working on it,” Trowa said with a note of finality. He then rapped lightly on upright between them and the driver. “Garry, drop me off at Preventers headquarters please.”

“You’re not coming to lunch with us?” Quatre asked, almost pleadingly.

“I told Une I’d guest speak while we were up here. Remember, this was your day off. I had stuff planned,” Trowa said, giving Quare a light kiss, to signal he wasn't upset.

Quatre just nodded and then ran a hand over his face and then through his hair.

* * *

“He’s not mad, is he?”

“It hasn’t been easy, I’ll say that. He’ll be okay though. Trowa always needs…wind down time.”

“Wind down time?” Aria asked, noting that Quatre was still in business mode.

Quatre sighed and seemed to relax a bit. “I think this job is getting to him because the truth couldn’t come out. The fact that he can’t even hold my hand in public kills us both. He’s not much of a pda person, but even a hand on my back could make the news, as you found out today,” he said with a small smile. “During the war, I learned that he needs space to think through an issue, punch a few pillows and then go back to life as usual,” he finished with a small smile.

“But is this normal or is it getting worse?” she asked, but before he could answer, she continued, “Sorry, it’s none of my business.”

Quatre smiled a genuine smile this time. “It’s normal, I assure you. Out of all of us, Duo, Wufei, and I are best at dealing with our emotions as they come. Heero had to really learn how to process feelings as a whole, which he’s still working on. Trowa…he needs time to process. Things that really frustrate him can take him hours to work out.”

Aria just nodded. “I find a punching bag helps a lot.”

Quatre tilted his head to the side at that revelation. “Funny, that’s where he ends up when we’re at the house,” he said and then turned back to his low-mien.

Aria wasn’t sure how to take that statement. She gave herself a mental shrug and decided to let it drop. “So, when you didn’t have a business crisis, what did you have planned?”

“Oh I don’t know. I spend most of my day either with WEI business or Preventer business. When I have free time I usually read, wander the gardens or play music. Normally the latter is reserved for when Trowa is home,” he finished with a smile.

“Oh, what instrument do you play?”

Quatre actually blushed. “I mainly play the violin, but I do know how to play the piano and the flute as well.”

Aria smiled. “Kai taught me the basics, or what she called basics, on the piano. I haven’t touched one in years though.”

“It’s like riding a bike. It will come back to you as soon as you touch the keys.”

* * *

Quatre had to pick up some documents from the WEI building after lunch, and decided to go up to the roof for a bit. He found a bench that was situated by the guard rail and motioned for Aria to sit with him.

“So, when the house is finished, you’ll be moving in with us?” It was a statement, phrased as a question to give her the impression she had a choice.

“I hadn’t planned on it. Who knows what those creeps were after. I’ll just find a new place,” she said, shaking her head.

“And you’ll be staying where in the meantime?”

“Don’t go all business on me Quatre. Please. You’ve already done enough for me, and it’s high time I stood on my own two feet. Duo said I could crash at his place while he’s up here at the security summit.”

Quatre smiled. He was glad those two seemed to pick up where they left off all those years ago.

“They’re all coming back to the house once it’s done you know. I’m sure Sherry would love having another girl around the house. Her daughter and granddaughter live on L3 so she hardly gets an opportunity to see them. My sisters and Relena don’t visit enough.”

“You’re not going to let me say no, are you?”

“Sure I will. I just won’t give you a reason to,” he said with a smile and turned to look out over the curve of the colony.

Aria rolled her eyes. “So they all live with you and have their own places?”

“It’s a large house, but every now and then, we all need our space. Duo is actually the only one that has a regular separate place. Wufei just finds a space for a few days and Heero…well he’s a mystery we’re still trying to figure out. Trowa always knows where the circus is and he ends up there when he needs some serious space.”

“And you?”

Quatre let out a huff of laughter. “I don’t have time to get space.” It was an idle comment though, nothing hostile about it. “At the same time, I have more resources at my disposal than I know what to do with at times. I could easily find some place to slip away. But I hardly ever want to.”

Aria just gave him a curious look.

“I have twenty-nine sisters. You’d think that I’d want nothing but peace and quiet, but I only knew a handful as a child. During the wars, and the year in between, I was with the Maganacs. My sisters are scattered across the colonies and Earth now and the only family I have are the guys. They are the brothers I never had.”

Aria wasn’t sure she understood, but had come to realize that Quatre tended to preface every major point with details that, to some, might be irrelevant. Though, to those that listened, every word meant something.

“They remind me of the troubles we suffered through, and the peace we won. They remind me that, as individuals we are dangerous yet strong, but as a group, we can do great things with that strength,” he said and then paused, brows furrowed in concentration. “Each of them reminds me of the parts we played, not the bad, but the good, to get where we are right now. I enjoy coming home to that physical reminder every day. Trowa especially. That out of such craziness comes such joy.”

Aria smiled. She hadn’t been around long, but that bond was clear. Normally, relationships born from fire, so to speak, didn’t last. She could see though, that this was the exception to the rule.

“It’s funny,” she started when she was sure Quatre wasn’t going to speak further. “Here I thought I was going to learn about you today, and I’m learning more about the people you care about.”

“That’s because they are who I am. I don’t mean to say that without them I’d be lost, but they are what makes my life full, and I couldn’t ask for more. I love sharing in their joy and helping them through the rough patches.”

Aria nodded and considered her next line of questions. “Consider this an odd question, or not, but what is a point of joy you remember and what time of sorrow do you share with them?”

Quatre stood and leaned his arms at the rail and bowed his head, eyes closed. “Joy was when I first met Trowa,” he said and smiled, eyes still closed. “Though, I should say, when he came with me instead of fighting me. I had finally found an equal that wasn’t going to bow to me, but understand what I was, or rather what we all were, going through. Meeting the others was just…well it made me feel like I wasn’t alone. Duo and I spent some down time during the first war together and have been better friends for it. I had been so sheltered before I left for Earth, and knowing that they were there with me just made my heart sing,” he finished, making no attempt to answer the latter half of her question.

Quatre was very good at skirting topics when asked the wrong questions. Being trained as a socialite though, Aria knew how to counter that maneuver while appearing genuine.

“Call it women’s intuition, but I get the impression some of your sorrow comes from Trowa…” she hedged.

Quatre gave a small, knowing smile that would have been an outright smirk on anybody else. “I know better,” he said, skirting again.

“Know better?” Aria asked, confused.

“I know an empath when I meet one,” he said with a smile.

Aria seemed taken aback by the statement. “It’s not something I advertise,” she said, trying to regain her composure. “That and I don’t make a habit of using it much. It’s been years actually. I wasn’t sure it still…worked.”

Quatre just smiled again and nodded. “It doesn’t go away; your walls have just gotten stronger. But because you hadn’t actually tried to control it that much, I can tell. You’d be surprised how many people are accomplished empaths though. One of my sisters is actually doing research about the correlation to living in space and the evolution of the human mind and its abilities.”

“We’re evolving?” Aria asked, somewhat jokingly.

“It seems that way. But her research is still in its infancy.”

Aria just nodded. “So, back to the question at hand…”

Quatre sighed. “It’s not by his doing really. The war did…strange…things to us all. I’m sure we all have points we would rather forget. I won’t share that for them, but we each did things we’re not proud of. I still carry that with me every day,” he finished and shuddered.

She still had no idea what he was referring to, but when Aria placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, he jumped. Turning to her, he just blinked rapidly for a moment.

“What?”

“Nothing, I…I get lost in those memories occasionally and it can sometimes be consuming.” What he wouldn’t tell her is that in that brief touch, he had a spark of a vision of a wagon under fire and children being separated from their parents. “When did you know you were an empath?” he asked, changing the topic back to something more neutral.

Aria shrugged and looked back over the colony. “I guess since I was little, I never thought about it. I mean, I knew I was different because I instantly knew who to trust as a kid…but sometimes people figure it out and can put forth a very convincing front. Though I’ve really only been thoroughly duped two or three times,” she said confidently, but shuddered at the memories.

“Why did you think it didn’t work anymore?”

“I think I started relying on body language and other things to tell me who to trust. Either that or I just got too used to it being my guidance and it’s become something of second nature instead of something I focus and rely on.”

“What did it tell you when you met me?”

“To throw the knife to the side of your head, not through it,” she said with a smirk.

“I’m grateful,” he said dryly.

“I guess it does work, otherwise I wouldn’t have agreed to spend time with a bunch of strangers that flew the very machines that saved Earth.”

“You flew one of them too,” he said.

“Yeah, and defended a planet that was hermit ridden and falling apart at the same rate as the 5th at L2,” she said with a huff. “Honestly, if your sister wants to further her range of study, those weirdos would be great test subjects,” she finished with a roll of her eyes.

“Is that how you and Duo became friends?”

“Hmm?” she asked, not catching up with the change back to her empathy right away. “Oh…sorta. He was one of the few kids my age between the two groups. Solo and Sherian had been friendly enough to share space and the occasional food supply if need be, so us kids played together a lot. The other boys hated the idea of playing with a girl, but I got the impression that Duo would pay attention to me if I bugged him enough. It helped that we were both super sneaks,” she finished with a smile.

“What does it tell you now?”

“Quatre!”

“What?” he asked, trying to act innocent.

“I might not have much practice, but you’re not doing too well shielding yourself either,” she said with a mock glare.

“Only because I am allowing it,” he said with a confident smile, this time it was a smirk.

Aria closed her eyes for a moment and focused on trying to actually close herself off.

“Ow! Hey! Stop that!” Quatre called.

Aria stopped instantly and opened her eyes to find Quatre breathing hard. “Shit! Quatre, are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he said, straightening. “I’ll have to teach you how to control that better. What were you trying to do?”

“Trying to shut it off from you,” she said with a blush.

“Instead you amplified. I suspect you were trying to feel it first to try and get control over it.”

“Crap. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” he said with a smile. “At least warn me next time. That was almost as intense as one of Trowa’s or Heero’s nightmares.”

Aria just gave him a questioning look.

Quatre just shook his head. “Close quarters and pure exhaustion,” was all he supplied for now.

Aria got it though. It’s like she could feel each one of them buzzing with energy when she was close by. Duo’s was frantic, almost erratic, but schooled into a bubble that didn’t extend too far. Quatre’s was high powered, but very well controlled. Heero’s was forceful and had a tendency to just kind of lash out at the oddest moments. Trowa’s was almost like a low hum that was very close to his person. Wufei’s almost used his like a weapon but was otherwise a slow moving stream winding around him. It was odd, she had never thought about it until just now, but those images came readily and instantly.

“High powered and well controlled? I’m flattered,” Quatre said.

Aria just leveled a look at him. “Mind reading now?”

“General impressions,” he corrected.

“Keep it up and I’ll focus again,” she jokingly warned.

“Just a warning though. When Duo or Trowa get upset…well, I’ll have to teach you how to block. He may run calm most of the time, but I have been close right after battle and…it wasn’t pretty.”

Aria didn’t have to ask for clarification on whom the last comment was about. Like people always said ‘It’s always the quiet ones’. Though she knew Duo could be explosive; it was a trait carried over from childhood that clearly had manifested into a battle tactic.

“So, any special requests for your room?” Quatre said, changing topics again.

“Hmm?”

“Well, Duo listens to music without headphones, so the dampeners are the best we could find, along with a great surround system. Wufei wanted the living room to be spacious so he could use it for meditation and his morning forms in case the weather is bad. Heero has a lot of extra electrical running to it for all of his various projects.”

“And you? Trowa?”

“I just wanted an open feel with enough space. I didn’t want the room to feel too cramped. Trowa has an extra room that is connected to the sitting area, but he didn’t have any specifics about it.”

“Well, if I were to move in, the sound system thing wouldn’t hurt. I tend to listen to a lot of pre-colony stuff with some good bass. I dunno. I’m not very picky, though I did like the bathroom set-up at the apartment.”

“Like the space?”

“Loved the bathtub,” she said, practically purring. “The shower door was neat too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 1“Damn it” in French (or so says the on-line translator) [return to story]


	7. Third Time's a Charm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aria's day with Trowa doesn't go as planned.

_Oh let the bullets fly, oh let them rain_  
_My life, my love, my drive, it came from..._  
_Pain!_  
_You made me a, you made me a believer, believer_

_Last things last_  
_By the grace of the fire and the flames_  
_You're the face of the future, the blood in my veins, oh ooh_  
Believer - Imagine Dragons

_**May A.C. 197** _

“Oh Trowa, they’re beautiful!”

“You think so?”

“Of course!”

“Normally people are scared when they get this close.”

“Are you kidding me?! These are some of nature’s most beautiful creatures!” Aria exclaimed while reaching her hand into a cage.

“Careful, Bena doesn’t like…” he stopped when the large beast started purring.

“I’ve only seen one other stranger do that,” came a cheerful voice. “Trowa! You were supposed to let me know when you were going to be in the same area!” Catherine mock scolded.

“Surprise?” Trowa said with a hint of amusement.

Catherine closed the distance between them in a few long strides and wrapped her arms around the taller boy. Trowa returned a small yet warm hug as well.

“I’ve actually been at headquarters a lot going over the outlines so that we’re all on the same page. That and Quatre has had a lot of meetings. I’m sure you’ve heard about the slip in paperwork from yesterday,” he said, finishing with a slight scowl.

Catherine nodded and then looked at the girl behind him, still petting the lion. Her eyes narrowed as she recognized the stranger. “You,” she started, clearly going into protective mode.

“Easy Cathy,” Trowa said.

“How dare you insert yourself into Quatre’s life like that!” she said, ignoring her brother’s warning.

Aria stood and faced the redhead with a neutral look. She then took the two steps necessary to close the distance but didn’t extend her hand. “I did no such thing, thank you,” she answered, heat touching her words. “The press got the wrong idea and ran with it. I would never do anything to cause harm to Quatre and Trowa’s relationship,” she finished, face still set, but her eyes were dark with anger at the assumption.

Catherine actually took a step back, her eyes flicking between her brother and the new girl. She could have sworn… ‘No, not possible. They just have been spending time together…’

“Cathy...” Trowa said, his voice half concerned, half angry at the exchange. “This is Aria. She’s a friend of ours.”

“Aria?” Catherine questioned.

“Yes,” Aria ventured. “Aria Bennett,” she said, slightly confused.

Catherine looked as though she’d been smacked and then swallowed. “I’m sorry Aria, I shouldn’t have gone off on you like that, it’s just…”

Aria held up her hand and shook her head. “You’re protective. I get that. Just, next time ask first.”

Trowa watched the whole exchange. He was very confused by Catherine’s reaction and it seemed Aria was as well but was satisfied to let it drop.

Catherine blushed. “So, how long have you known the guys?”

“About a month,” Aria returned with a slight smile indicating that the tension was already forgotten.

“And you’re up here with Quatre on business?”

“Umm, something like that,” she answered, sliding a glance at Trowa.

Catherine looked like she couldn’t decide what to ask next. She wanted to know more about this stranger that was tagging along with her brother, but it was clear that Trowa wasn’t in the mood for her mothering.

“She’s a fellow pilot,” was all Trowa supplied. He let Catherine take from that what she wanted to.

Catherine’s face fell back into a scowl.

“You know, Trowa, I’m in the way here. I can grab a cab back to the hotel,” she said with a look that clearly read, ‘I can’t win with this one.’

“Give us a minute Cathy?”

“Fine,” the red head said, stalking off down the row of cages.

Trowa turned back to Aria. “She’s protective…”

“I got that,” Aria cut in.

“…because I got…hurt…during the war and had a bout of amnesia. She found me wandering around and brought me back here again. She was heartbroken when I went back to space. We lost our parents and a sister to war and she was old enough to remember portions of it. I was too young…but she hates anything to do with war.”

“She’s your sister?!”

“Yeah,” he said, as if it were no big deal.

“Then tell her who I am!” she hissed, swatting him on the shoulder.

“That will take most of the morning,” he said, ignoring the minor assault, as if it happened all the time.

“It will not, and I’d rather spend the time than have her hate me.”

“She doesn’t hate you.”

“Could have fooled me,” Aria said, pouting.

“She was the same way the first time she met Duo and Quatre,” he said, as if that explained everything.

Aria rolled her eyes and turned back to the lions.

* * *

“Help me.”

“With what?” Quatre asked, distracted by something off screen.

“They are going to kill each other.”

“They wouldn’t.”

“They will, and I’m not sure who has the deadlier aim with a knife,” Trowa said, looking over his shoulder.

“My money is on Aria, but that’s just because she can aim without actually looking at her target.”

“Quatre!”

“Sorry!” he said through a giggle.

“I’m serious. Cathy got one look at Aria and nearly killed her with a glare alone. Then after we told Cathy who Aria really was…”

“You did WHAT?!” Quatre almost yelled, turning his attention fully to the screen.

“…Cathy practically spat nails. Aria hasn’t taken the defensive behavior very well. I didn’t even want to leave them alone to make this call, but Aria is watching the teens practice with the horses and Cathy is off teaching the youngest ones how to multiply.”

“Trowa, we weren’t going to tell anybody!”

“You told Relena,” he said and then looked over his shoulder again to make sure things were still settled.

“Only so she could help us maneuver out of any political implications, should we need it,” Quatre returned, handing a piece of paper to somebody off screen.

“Who is Cathy going to tell?”

“Anybody she can or wants to if it means getting Aria away from you, it sounds.”

Trowa rolled his eyes. “What do I do? If it were the guys, I’d just let them kick the shit out of each other and call it a day.”

“Take away the knives and let them have at it,” came Wufei’s retort, off screen.

“Funny Chang.”

“I’m serious Barton,” Wufei said, coming into view. “Catherine has to learn you can make decisions on whom you spend time with. Not everybody is a threat.”

Trowa furrowed his brow in frustrated concentration, clearly warring with the decision.

“Trowa!” Quatre said, clearly dismayed that his lover was even contemplating it.

“What?” he asked innocently, like he hadn’t actually thought it was a good idea. “Maybe a good screaming match would help both of them.”

Quatre just settled him with a ‘That was so not what you were thinking about,’ look.

“I’ve gotta go, class is over,” Trowa said hurriedly and cut the connection.

“I hope they both come home in one piece,” Quatre said wearily.

“The question is, will Catherine still be around if that happens?”

Quatre just groaned.

* * *

“He’s been through enough! You shouldn’t be inserting yourself into his life you leech!”

“He’s a big boy, he can handle it! And Quatre invited me! So far _you’re_ the only one that’s had a problem!”

“You don’t know him at all!”

“That’s why I’m here, to get to know him. If you’d just stop hovering for one damn second, we might actually get to that part of the day!”

Clearly the manners had been dropped and the gloves were off.

“He’s my brother! There is a lot you don’t know and you could do more damage than you think!”

“I will not! I’m not forcing him to spend time with me, nor would I force him to answer any questions I have.”

“He owes you nothing. Just because you’re another one of _them_ ,” Catherine hissed the word, “doesn’t mean you deserve to know everything. You weren’t there!”

“I am now,” Aria said with a deadly tone. Somewhere in the back of her mind she wasn’t even sure why the hell she cared so much, but she wasn’t going to back down now.

“We lost our family to the war, he doesn’t need another reminder hanging around!”

“So would you have him move out of the house to get away from the guys and that reminder?

“No,” Catherine said quietly.

“Good. I lost most of my family as well. That’s why I chose to fight. To make sure nobody loses what I lost. At least you two found each other. For all I know, my father and siblings are dead. My mother died due to blood poisoning from a gunshot wound after an attack.”

Catherine had taken the length of that explanation to wind up again. “If you lost so much, why cause more pain by killing more?”

“I didn’t unless it couldn’t be avoided! I was at Mars, defending it, not taking it down!”

“Liar!”

“Enough!” Trowa’s voice rang out.

Both girls stopped short. Aria was a hair’s breadth from launching herself at Catherine for the last retort. Like Duo, Aria didn’t lie…at least not if she could help it.

“Catherine, Aria is a friend. War time or not, I expect you to treat her with respect. Furthermore, if I hear you insult _any_ of the guys again like that, I will cease to visit. Aria, you know better than to engage in pointless battles.”

“Pointless?” Catherine squeaked.

Trowa threw a pointed look at his sister. “Yes. You have no right to pick fights with people Quatre and I trust to stay in our home and whom we choose to befriend,” he said and turned to Aria, “You should know that much and not have sunk to a screaming match,” he chided.

Aria glared at him like a stubborn child and Catherine stared at him with her mouth agape.

“Furthermore Cathy, Aria is no liar. Quatre, at Aria’s approval, looked into the events where she was and everything turned out just as she said. I brought her here because you are a big part of my life and I wanted you two to get to know each other; for her to know how I got through the wars.”

Neither of them seemed willing to let it go though. For some reason Aria had become somewhat attached to Trowa and she wasn’t about to let this red headed woman tell him what to do, sister or not. Catherine didn’t trust Aria as far as she could throw her, and though she was a circus performer, that wasn’t very far.

Trowa took the fact that neither of them had started yelling again as a good sign. He wasn’t about to take sides, but he couldn’t understand why Catherine was being so paranoid. Then again he wasn’t sure why Aria was taking the bait. Duo was usually the only one that could get this much of a rise out of her. Anybody else and she normally just walked away or stayed quiet.

“I need to tend to the animals,” Catherine finally said.

Trowa just nodded and Aria said nothing.

As soon as Catherine left though, Aria deflated. “I am so sorry Trowa. I didn’t mean for it to get…that out of hand,” she finished, looking at the ground.

“I’d say it’s not normal for her, but then I’d be lying,” he said, watching Catherine walk off. “I need a minute,” he said after a pause and then turned to walk off towards the big tent.

“Right. Wind down time,” she said to herself and then kicked at a pebble. She had clearly made quite a mess out of the day without intending to. That, combined with the press stunt, she was 0 for 2 since being back in the colonies. She found a spare shipping crate and hoisted herself onto it, letting her legs dangle over the edge. She wasn’t sure how long she was there and wasn’t really paying attention to the people that passed by until somebody actually spoke to her.

“Hey kid, if you wanna join, the Manager’s trailer is over there,” a rather well muscled man said, pointing down the row of trailers.

“Sorry, but no. I’m just waiting for a friend. If I’m in the way, I can go elsewhere,” Aria answered.

“Naw, we just get a lot of runaways that try and give this place a go. Though, you must be bored out here. I’m headed to teach trapeze and tightrope practice in the big tent, why don’t you follow me and you can at least be entertained while you wait.”

“Thanks. Sounds like fun,” she said with a smile and hopped off the crate.

* * *

“Trowa! I learned a triple flip last week! Cathy said she might let me in the high ropes act if I perfect it soon enough!” a child said as Aria and the man entered the tent unnoticed.

“That’s great Noah. Somebody needs to take my place,” he finished with a small smile.

“Yeah, Archer isn’t that great. He’s missed his grip the last two shows,” Noah said with a slight frown.

“Well, we all have to learn, and making mistakes helps us learn.”

“I know. It’s just…it hurts the show if he’s no good.”

“I’ve been sick you pipsqueak,” the subject of ridicule said as he rolled off the net.

“Easy Archer. Noah has a point. If you’re not feeling well, it would do everybody good if you rested and left out that part of the act instead of potentially injuring you or anybody else because you’re not all there.”

Archer just scowled.

“Hey Trowa,” Noah said, “can you show me your flip sequence? I wanna learn that one next.”

“As you can see, I don’t have my stuff on. That and you should learn one trick at a time.”

“Aww come on! You don’t come around that often anymore! We all miss you and it sure is fun to watch.”

“Squirt has a point,” Archer said.

“Alright, give me ten and I’ll see if Cathy still has any of my stuff. Then maybe Casey and I can show you guys a thing or two.”

The man that had shown Aria into the tent looked a little startled at being called out. Thankfully Aria had moved from the man’s side upon seeing Trowa when she entered the tent so as not to upset him and she seemed to escape notice.

* * *

Trowa had managed to find a set of clothes that he hadn’t outgrown over the last year, and was up on a platform calling out instructions to the kids as they traded grips on the bars to others’ wrists, flipping to their knees, and back again. Aria was fully impressed at the skill and timing all these kids had.

“Remember, it’s all about spotting. If your timing is off, you can fix that, but if you don’t look at your target, you’ll never learn to land it,” Trowa called out.

Aria watched as Trowa launched high into the air, tucking and somersaulting once, then straightening out to twist three times and land with cat-like grace on the neighboring platform in front of the boys.

“Whoa,” Noah said.

“I swear you’re superhuman,” Archer said.

Aria had to hide a laugh. She continued to watch for another twenty minutes as the boys practiced.

“You should give it a try,” Trowa called down to her.

Aria blushed at having been found out. “I...I wouldn’t know where to start,” she stammered out.

Trowa just gave a small smirk. “Climbing the ladder is usually the first step.”

Aria rolled her eyes and made her way to the base of the pole beneath the tightrope wire. Once she was up on the platform, she wasn’t sure why she had even agreed to this. Heights didn’t scare her, but she did prefer to be on solid ground rather than a wire.

“Any pointers?” Aria called out.

“Don’t fall,” Trowa said flatly, though he was smiling.

“You’re hilarious,” she said as she contemplated her first move. Truth be told, she and Duo had been very cat-like in their thievery as kids, so this should be no problem. She took in a deep breath and took her first two steps out, and to her surprise, didn’t tumble to the net below. In fact, it almost felt natural. She chalked it up to years of training in various forms.

It wasn’t until she got to the middle that she felt herself falter. Only a split second too late did she register the wire moving due to somebody else being on it with her. Reflexes kicked in and she reached out and caught the wire on her way down. She used her momentum, piking her legs, and swung around the rope a few times, letting go at the top of a swing, pirouetting mid air, and landing back on the wire. She faced the intruder, glaring, ready to yell, until she saw who it was.

“Not bad,” Trowa said.

Aria just raised an eyebrow at him.

“Lady, you should join us!” Noah called to her.

“Maybe some other day,” she said, with a smile. With that, she did a double back layout off the wire and fell gracefully into the net. She rolled to the side, as she had seen others do, and swung off the edge, landing in front of Catherine.

“Where did you learn that?” she whispered.

“Training,” was all Aria offered.

Both girls felt the air from the net as Trowa landed.

“Cathy...” he started once he landed.

The red head was still acting strangely, but this time she was back to looking like she had seen a ghost.

“Trowa, I’m trying to trust you, but...”

“But nothing. Trust me. Simple,” Trowa said, with a note finality.

Catherine just gave a short nod and turned to leave.

“Did I do something?” Aria asked.

“While I do find it interesting that you are a natural on the tightrope, I can’t say I’m surprised, given your background,” Trowa said, still watching after his sister. “I’m not sure what has her so wound up though. Maybe we should head to lunch and come back another time,” he finished, heading the opposite direction.

“Sure,” Aria said sullenly.

* * *

“Trowa, I really am sorry,” Aria said as they waited for their food.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said honestly.

“Listen, I know you don’t owe me anything, least of all, your time. If you want to go back and spend the rest of the day with Cathy, I won’t be offended.”

“Aria, we really don’t know each other, but I know Quatre. I trust him. With my life. He has taken a great interest in you. Given your background, I feel like I do, in fact, owe you some of my time, even if it is just an afternoon.”

Aria could tell that he wasn’t trying to be hostile, but she had gotten along with the guys, for the most part, pretty well, up until now. Now, it seemed like Trowa had reservations about her.

Trowa could tell he had upset her, but didn’t know what to say to reassure her that he did actually want to spend time with her.

“I get it. I’m new. I’m unexpected. I’m the intruder,” she said, looking at her drink.

“You’re far from an intruder,” he said softly. “You’re a friend to Yamane, Wufei and Duo. Quatre trusts you. I’m just not sure where I fit into it all I guess. I’m also not sure why Cathy is having issues. She’s very protective, but this is...”

“Ridiculous,” Aria finished when Trowa didn’t.

Trowa stifled a laugh.

“Sorry. That was rude,” she said, even though she was smiling.

“No. Ridiculous fits,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“Why are you wondering where you fit in with me here?” she asked after a bit.

Trowa swallowed. “It’s been a rough two years,” he started slowly. “Hell, it’s been a rough 17 years. I spent most of my life without a name. Then I’m given a name, a Gundam, and a mission, and was one of five, well, six, that brought on peace...eventually. Sometimes I wonder when the other shoe will drop. The last several months have been a real adjustment, to say the least. I’m not used to living the way Quatre does. It’s hard for me sometimes, to accept that I’m enough for him.”

“I think you know better,” she chided softly.

“I do, but growing up the way I did; I think there will always be a part of me that wonders if this is where I belong.”

Aria nodded. “So why do I complicate things?”

“I’m not sure ‘complicate’ is the right word, but you fit in. Easily. It’s like you have been here all along. It’s just unsettling,” he said, as though it was obvious.

Aria did her best to not bristle at his words. Again, she knew he wasn’t trying to be mean. Trowa was a very direct person, and, like Heero, didn’t waste words. She also knew that this morning had been rough, and without time to process, he may be failing to cope.

“So is that why you’ve been keeping me at arm’s length?”

Trowa sighed. “I’m not good at this. Heero was the first person to tell me to act on my emotions,” he said, and actually laughed at the face Aria made at that revelation. “Trust me, that was quite the conversation. But please understand that I had been a veritable loner until I met Quatre and the others. It took time to get used to being around them, trusting them, and working with them. I actually feel very comfortable around you, but that feels odd to me. Seeing you on the tightrope actually made me happy, and I couldn’t tell you why.”

Aria relaxed at that.

“I think my issue comes from the fact that I trust Quatre, but I also trust Cathy. She has always looked out for me, when Quatre couldn’t.” Aria was about to ask, but Trowa just shook his head. “That’s a story for another time.”

Aria just nodded.

“I guess I’m trying to figure out Cathy’s reaction to you. She was almost scared of you.”

“I promise, I didn’t threaten her,” Aria said teasingly.

Trowa just shrugged. “I also don’t know why you let her get under your skin.”

“Trust me, I wonder that too. It’s not like you need me to defend you, but the way she was acting was just over the top protective and I couldn’t help myself,” she said with a shrug.

Just then, their food arrived. They ate in silence for a while.

“What do you do for fun?” Aria asked as they were finishing.

“Fun?”

“You do know what fun is, right?” she joked.

Trowa just gave her a look.

“Oh humor me,” she tried.

“Honestly, I don’t know. That’s part of the adjustment. Not really sure what ‘normal’ and ‘fun’ look like. Though I haven’t had much down time to contemplate that either.”

“Hmm,” she said, studying him for a moment, and then turned to her phone, searching for something. “I got it.”

Trowa just raised an eyebrow.

Aria just smiled and signaled to the waitress for the bill. Before Aria could grab it, Trowa handed the girl a card, with a sly grin. Aria just rolled her eyes.

* * *

“Hello little lady,” Hal said to Aria as she entered his lobby. “Ah, and hello to her friend as well,” he said as Trowa followed her in.

“Hello Sir,” she replied with a smile.

“Please, call me Hal. What can I do for you two today?” Hal said, leaning on one of the many cases that lined the perimeter of the room.

“I believe you stock quite a selection, and we were looking to try out a few of your...heavier...calibers,” Aria said, watching Trowa closely. She didn’t miss the slight shift in his posture at her word choice.

Hal just looked between the two of them. “I might have what you’re looking for, but I have to ask, is this just for fun or...”

“Purely stress relief,” Aria said with a smile, putting the shop owner at ease.

“Well then, in that case, how large you looking to go?”

“What can your range handle?”

“Honey, this place is lined double thick in gundanium. Unless you have a beam cannon, nothing I have is getting through my walls.”

This time both former pilots looked at the man with slight shock on their faces, Trowa swallowing hard at the mention of the cannon.

“How do you think they knew what those machines were capable of withstanding? Most ranges are lined that way, especially up in space. Don’t want to go poking a hole in the side of a colony,” he said with a laugh, clearly not understanding who he was talking to.

“Go big or go home, I guess,” Aria said, recovering first. “Trowa, you pick,” she said as she walked over to the case that housed some rather large firearms. She could practically see him relax as he surveyed the collection.

* * *

“Whew,” Aria said as she cleared her weapon and set it on the table in front of her.

Trowa just smiled, similarly clearing the firearm he was currently using.

They both returned to the lobby, to find Hal reading an old magazine. “Have fun?” he asked them.

“Actually, yeah,” Trowa said.

“How much do we owe you Hal?” Aria asked.

The man looked over the collection they had used, and totaled up the amount of ammunition they ran through. He totaled everything and turned the screen to her.

Aria blew out a low whistle. “Man Hal, your toys aren’t cheap,” she said, fishing for her card.

“Nope. I pride myself on having the best, so I don’t cheap out on anything.”

“Good man,” Aria said, finally finding her card, only to hear the register print out a receipt already.

“Hey, this was my treat,” Aria said to Trowa.

“Gotta be quicker than that,” he said with a smile.

They waved to Hal and stepped out to the parking lot.

“At least let me pay for the cab back.”

“We can call Garry.”

Aria just rolled her eyes.

“Who knew I missed it so much...” Trowa started.

“Those machines were an extension of us. Yours just happened to be one that has a slightly easier weapon to replicate on a smaller scale.”

Trowa nodded. It had actually been rather cathartic to have made it through Hal’s impressive collection.

“Just don’t challenge Quatre to a sword fight,” Trowa said amusedly.

“I saw the pictures of Sandrock. Definitely not interested.”

Trowa smiled and pulled out his phone, calling Garry for a ride.

“You wanna hear something funny?” Aria started once Trowa hung up.

“I may have a clown outfit for shows, but I’m not one for jokes normally.”

Aria glared at him, only to find a hint of mirth dancing in his eyes.

“No wonder you and Heero get along. Your sense of humor is as dry as a desert.”

Trowa just tilted his head to the side in agreement. “You were saying?”

“Oh, yeah. I spent the afternoon with Quatre yesterday,” she said, but shook her head when Trowa looked like he was going to be a smart ass again. “I didn’t learn a whole lot about him, but learned a lot about the rest of you.”

“Quatre is an open book, as long as you know how to read fine print,” Trowa said lightly.

Aria considered it for a moment, and then nodded. “I can see that.”

“Was there something you wanted to know?”

“No. I mean...” she hesitated.

Trowa raised an eyebrow.

“Why does he want me around?”

Trowa actually gave a full smile at that. “He uses his empathy as a weapon sometimes,” he said with a laugh. “Once he got over the shock of nearly being speared, he could tell you were somebody to trust.”

“That’s not what I’m asking,” she cut in.

“Even while protecting himself from everybody, he feels things very intensely,” Trowa continued. “And like I said earlier, you just fit in. He feels that. He would never forgive himself if anything had happened to you the other night at your place. He was the one that secured the apartment for you, so, even aside from feeling like you’ve been with us since the onset of Operation Meteor, he’d feel responsible.”

“That’s the last thing I want,” she said, somewhat irritated.

“I know. But it’s just how he operates. He is quite the ‘mother hen’ to us all sometimes, though he’d never admit it. He’s just a natural born leader and protector. He wants you in his circle, so I recommend just going with it. None of us trust outsiders easily, so if he’s wanting to have you around, that says a lot.”

“You make it sound like I don’t have a choice,” Aria said flatly.

Trowa let out a puff of laughter at that. “He’s a businessman. He can make you want something you’ve never wanted _and_ make you think it was your idea.”

“That hardly seems fair.”

“I will say that he uses that tactic infrequently, but he is that charming when properly motivated.”

Aria wasn’t sure she was comfortable with that, but admired the tone Trowa used when talking about Quatre. Trowa was normally very tight lipped, but when he did open up, you could tell when he really cared.

“I promise, he only has good intentions,” Trowa said, trying to be as reassuring as he could. “I don’t think Duo would mind having you around either,” he hedged.

“Why do you say that?”

“You two grew up together. Quatre and Duo spent time together during the wars so he has the friendship there, and with Heero...whatever that is these days. He’s always a happy guy, but I dunno, something lit up in him when you were at the house that first night.”

Aria blushed.

“That says a lot, since he is very rarely ‘off’,” Trowa added with a roll of his eyes.

Aria ducked her head, but laughed.

“It’s been nice having people around that I can just be...me. I didn’t like lying to Yamane about my past and why Howard cashed in a favor for me, but it goes with the job.”

Trowa nodded. That was another part of the adjustment; not talking about their pasts to anybody but a select few. It made it harder to move on sometimes.

“I will warn you though,” Trowa said after a bit, “war hardened us all a bit, Duo and Quatre are just the best at dealing with it all.”

Aria nodded. She knew that all too well. No normal teenager slept with a gun under their pillow or looked for all the exits when entering a building. “I get that,” was all she answered with.

“Garry is here,” Trowa said, inclining his head down the road.

“We’re good?” she asked, not even sure why.

“We’re good,” he answered, opening the door for her.

She smiled warmly at him as she got in the car, and was treated to a full smile in return.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still working on the next few chapters. They really just don't want to come together yet. ^_^' 
> 
> I appreciate every single one of my readers. Thank you!

**Author's Note:**

> I am trying to get songs for all chapters. That might take the longest between posting each chapter.


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